After an hours-long standoff, law enforcement arrested a robbery suspect Thursday in Fairfax County’s Huntington neighborhood.
Anthony Edwards, of Maryland, was located in the attic of a vacant home in the 2400 block of Byrd Lane around 7:30 p.m., less than a mile from the convenience store he is accused of burglarizing.
Nearly eight hours earlier, the 51-year-old allegedly hopped the counter of the 7-Eleven at 2405 Fairhaven Avenue and brandished a weapon before filling a bag with cigarettes, according to scanner traffic.
Police responded to the convenience store just after 11:45 p.m. and began to pursue Edwards through a nearby residential area.
Witnesses told police that they saw Edwards traveling westbound from the store, located near the intersection of Fairhaven Avenue and Richmond Highway. Once he reached Bangor Drive, he turned right and continued to flee northbound, according to scanner traffic.
Around 12:19 p.m., police located a tray of lighters — “ditched evidence,” one officer said — in front of a home on Byrd Lane.
Officers established a perimeter around the residence, according to scanner traffic, which ultimately housed the suspect.
Edwards traveled approximately a half mile away from the crime scene, based on the alleged route, before hiding out in the vacant residence.
Edwards has been charged with two counts of robbery, as well as one count each of use of a firearm in the commission of a felony, felon in possession of a firearm and burglary.
The suspect has also been linked to an April 4 robbery at the same store, police said.
Edwards is currently in the custody of the Fairfax County Adult Detention Center.
