The Robbery Details and Update
I know a lot of people have been asking me what happened last week and if I'm OK (I am OK, and I truly appreciate everyone's concern). So here's a summary of what happened and some updates on the aftermath:
Last Tuesday I was robbed at gunpoint a few blocks from my apartment by three teenagers. A lot of my stuff was taken, but nothing that couldn't be replaced. I'm just happy to be unharmed. My neighbor, R, was jumped at the same time — I hadn't met him before, talk about a weird situation to get acquainted with someone. We were separately walking home from the Metro around 9:30 and the kids followed us. I was on my phone talking to E in Minneapolis and I was not paying attention to my surroundings as I walk. Then it was too late and there was a gun to my head and in 20 seconds it was over. I'll hold off on some of details about the kids and the weapons since the investigation is still open and ongoing.
Since both of my mobile phones were taken, I had to call 911 after borrowing a phone from K, my next door neighbor (she was incredibly helpful too). I gave the police a report — they were very quick to respond to the scene, showing up at the front door before the dispatcher was finished taking my info. I went to bed a bit shaken and paranoid since they had taken both my keys and had my address on my driver's license. I've since changed the locks to my apartment.
The next morning I got an e-mail from R, a guy who also works on The Hill, saying that he found my backpack and some of my stuff in an alley behind his house. It's funny, that's the only time where carrying around business cards with me has actually paid off. I was able to recover my notebooks, some headphones, and my Kindle (which was actually was the most valuable thing I was carrying). Not only did this guy return my stuff, but he is the one who is solely responsible for the leads the police currently have. Once this stuff all gets resolved, I think I may have to call Tommy Wells' office and ask that R be given some sort of commendation for everything he's done to help with the case. What he's done is so far above-and-beyond what I've come to expect from strangers in this city; he truly cares about his neighbors and about finding justice.
I'll try to keep posting updates as they happen.
