Springfield Police: Home Invaders Threatened To Burn Woman If She Didn't Give Them Money
SPRINGFIELD (CBS) -- Police arrested a man and woman Tuesday morning who they say broke into a woman's home, doused her in gasoline, and threatened to set her on fire if she didn't give them her ATM card and pin.
Monica Atkins, 28, and Angel Roman, 37, both of Springfield, were charged with home invasion, armed robbery, kidnapping, and armed assault with intent to murder. Springfield Police said other charges may be coming.
Springfield Police responded to a call reporting a home invasion around 3 a.m. Tuesday at a home on Arden Street to find a 63-year-old woman whose mouth had been duct taped and who smelled of gasoline.
The woman told officers that a man and woman had broken into her house some time after she fell asleep around 1 a.m. She told police the pair had duct taped her mouth and body, poured gas on her, and demanded her ATM card and pin number, threatening to set her on fire if she didn't give it to them. She cooperated, and told police the man and woman fled.
She was able to free herself and call police from a neighbor's house. Despite the darkness, the victim was able to identify the woman, and tentatively identify the man as her boyfriend, who she told police had recently been to her house.
Springfield Police Officer Scott Stelzer and his K9 partner, named Blek, tracked the smell of gasoline to a Bank of America ATM on Island Pond Road. Police said they found a sweatshirt soaked in gasoline, and determined that the pair were able to get an undisclosed amount of cash from the machine.
Then, Springfield Police Lt. Kenneth Murray called cab companies and found a taxi driver who had picked up a couple that smelled of gasoline on Agnes Street. The driver had dropped them off at the Springfield Inn in West Springfield.
Police said that, when they arrested Atkins and Roman without incident as they were coming back to their hotel room, the pair still smelled of gasoline.
Police said the pair had outstanding warrants--Atkins for larceny and uttering false checks, and Roman for armed burglary and assault with a dangerous weapon.
Springfield Police Commissioner John Barbieri praised officers for closing the case within two hours.