Three charged in Thursday robbery

Three Cape Girardeau men are facing burglary and assault charges after police say the men broke into an apartment on Bellevue Street, assaulted a resident with a handgun and fled after stealing $50 from her purse.

Greg Starks, 26, Parris Harrison, 18, and Alex Henry, 21, each face charges of first-degree robbery, first-degree burglary and armed criminal action. All were being held Friday at the Cape Girardeau County Jail.

According to a probable-cause statement, police responded to the call at 2:10 a.m. Thursday in which the victim said she had been sleeping on her couch when she heard the doorbell ring. When she got up, she saw the doorknob turn and a man burst through the door, wearing a black handkerchief covering his nose and mouth.

Clutching a handgun, the man allegedly hit the victim in the back of her head and then put the gun to her temple. The man demanded her money and drugs from the woman. The woman said her children were also in the back room and begged him to leave them alone.

The man yelled out the front door, saying "Yo cuz, get in here." The victim said two more men entered the apartment. One of the men ran into the back bedroom, where the victim's two children were sleeping. One of the men pulled the woman through the apartment by her hair. The victim told the men that she didn't have any drugs, but that she had $50 in her purse. The men took the money, threatened to kill them all if they told anyone about what happened, and fled, according to the statement.

The victim told police the men had left in a certain direction and police saw the three suspects with matching descriptions. When police were questioning one of the suspects, he tried to discard a black handkerchief, police said. Police found more than 110 grams of marijuana wrapped inside, which caused an additional charge of drug possession for Harrison.

smoyers@semissourian.com

388-3642

Pertinent address:

Bellevue Street, Cape Girardeau, Mo