Cambridge Police Arrest Five In Connection With Three Robberies

Cambridge police made five arrests in a three-day span at the end of last week in response to three separate robberies, including one where the victim was allegedly held at gunpoint.

Out of the six individuals the authorities suspect to have been involved in the three alleged robberies, five were arrested within 24 hours of the incidents.

Police attributed the increase in street robberies to the weather, saying that as temperatures become warmer, more people go outside.

“This wasn’t because there was any great increase [in street robberies]. It was a seasonal uptick we predicted,” said Daniel M. Riviello, the spokesperson for the Cambridge Police Department. “We are pleased that officers were able to get there quickly and make the arrests.”

At 12:53 a.m. on June 16, Cambridge police arrested three men who they said were punching and kicking an individual at a bus stop on the corner of Green Street and Magazine Street. The victim, who was later taken to a hospital, told the officers that they had stolen more than $600 from his wallet after beating him, according to police.

Nkosi Newton, 28; Alexander Reynolds, 24; and Robert Bonds, 31, were arrested for unarmed robbery.

The next day, Cambridge police arrested Nathaniel Pellegrini, 21, in connection with an armed robbery. At 2:50 a.m., a Cambridge resident told police that two men approached him on Cardinal Medeiros Avenue between Cambridge Street and James Way. Putting a gun to his forehead, they allegedly stole his sneakers, backpack, cellphone, iPod, and $20 in cash, according to police.

At around 8 p.m. that day, police located and arrested Pellegrini at his home in Norwood, Mass., according to a statement issued by the police on Tuesday about the arrests.

The final arrest in the series came on June 18 following an alleged robbery in an alley near JFK Street at about 5 a.m. A police sergeant on her way to work spotted Timothy D. Gayhart, 24, who matched the description of the suspect. He tried to flee from police but was eventually arrested, according to a police statement.

Although these arrests were made over a short period, Cambridge has not experienced an increase in street robberies over the same time interval in past years.

Street robbery crimes decreased by 7 percent from 2009 to 2010 and have decreased by 3 percent from the past five-year average, according to the Cambridge Police Department’s 2010 Annual Crime Report.

—Staff writer Kerry M. Flynn can be reached at kflynn@college.harvard.edu.