Crime & Courts

Police: Armed robbers followed Eagle River resident home from ATM

A pair of men accused of following an Eagle River resident to his home and robbing him at gunpoint Tuesday night were foiled by quick thinking on the victim's part, according to Anchorage police.

Kyon Watson, 27, and Carlton Tarkington, 23, were arrested at the Muldoon Tesoro 2Go gas station at 545 Muldoon Road shortly after the robbery, police spokeswoman Jennifer Castro said in a statement.

Police were first called to the victim's Mercy Drive home just before 8 p.m., when he said he had been tailed there by people in two sport-utility vehicles who saw him make an ATM withdrawal.

"When the resident is pulling up in the driveway, these vehicles pull up and these guys get out and they hold him at gunpoint, demanding the money he had taken from the ATM and his phone," Castro said. "When the resident called us to report the robbery, he also said that he could track the iPhone on his device."

Police also got a good description of the vehicles involved — a Dodge Durango and an Audi — from the victim and were able to track them to the gas station. Both were seized and impounded by police.

Officers were able to recover the victim's money as well as his iPhone.

"It looks like they had tossed the phone out on the side of the highway before they got back to Anchorage," Castro said. "We recovered it on the side of the highway."

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Investigators found five people in the two SUVs but initially arrested only Watson and Tarkington, who had an outstanding warrant for contempt of court. Additional charges may be filed upon further investigation, Castro said.

Watson and Tarkington were held at the Anchorage Correctional Complex on $25,000 bail each, with a third-party custodian required for their release.

Chris Klint

Chris Klint is a former ADN reporter who covered breaking news.

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