An Anchorage man remained hospitalized Friday with a pending arrest warrant after police officers shot him following robberies this week, police said.
Aaron Robert Woods, 31, will be jailed on two counts of first-degree robbery when he is released from the hospital, a police spokeswoman said in a written statement.
Police were on Woods' trail after two store clerks -- robbed late Monday and early Tuesday -- reported the suspect wore a dirty white, yellow and black Ski-Doo jacket. An officer recognized Woods from surveillance video because the officer had talked to Woods before when Woods was wearing the jacket, according to a charging document.
The charges say Woods first walked into a Brown Jug liquor store near Spenard Road and Minnesota Boulevard about 11 p.m. Monday. He had on the white, yellow and black jacket and handed a note to the clerk demanding all the money in the store, the charging document says.
"(The clerk) reported that when she asked him if it was serious the suspect put his hand in his pocket and indicated that he had a weapon," the charges say.
She gave the robber $140 from the register, and he left on foot, according to the charges.
Wearing the same jacket, Woods walked into a Holiday gas station store about 3:15 a.m. Tuesday, passed a note to the clerk and told her, "Open the drawer now or else," the charges say. The clerk told police Woods held his right hand inside his jacket as if he carried a gun. She gave him $120 from the register, according to the charging document.
Police said officers set up a perimeter around the store and used a police dog in an attempt to track the suspect, but they were unsuccessful in finding him. In the meantime, an officer recognized Woods as the robber in surveillance footage from the first store. He had interviewed Woods in an unrelated matter sometime earlier when Woods was wearing the same white, yellow and black jacket, the charges say.
Officers began looking for a silver Chevrolet van Woods was known to drive. About 4:30 a.m. Tuesday, an officer tried to stop the van in Spenard. Woods was behind the wheel and tried to drive away, ramming several vehicles, including police cars, the charges say.
Officers Lars Tulip and Scott Huston both opened fire, striking Woods, who was taken to a hospital, police spokeswoman Marlene Lammers said Friday. Police said a passenger in the van was injured when it collided with the other vehicles, but the charging document says the man, Evandor Henderson, told officers he was hit in the face by a bullet fragment.
Henderson later told officers he was with Woods "on and off" during the evening and that they were buying and selling drugs, the charges say.
"According to Henderson's timeline he was with Woods during the times of the reported robberies but denied that he knew anything about the robberies or participated in the robberies," the charging document says.
Henderson also said he told Woods not to run when officers tried to stop the van. He was released after medical treatment, police said.
Neither man's injuries were life-threatening, and no officers were hurt, police said.
Police say investigators continue to look into the robberies and the shooting.
Reach Casey Grove at casey.grove@adn.com or 257-4589.
By CASEY GROVE
Anchorage Daily News