Torin Myer of the 3900 block of Baring Street was apprehended early yesterday near 34th and Hamilton, a few blocks from the Drexel University campus. Police said he is not a student.

Police say Myer was exiting a convenience store and getting on a bicycle near 34th and Hamilton when Drexel University police Captain Fred Carbonara apprehended him. Myer had a BB gun, a knife, gloves and ski mask in his possession. Carbonara recognized Myer from the surveillance video made public last week.

“We had the area saturated yesterday,” said Detective Joe Murray from the Southwest Detectives.  “There was no way he was going to be able to walk around without getting caught. Just wish we had him sooner.”

Murray said Myer confessed to all four robberies.

Myer lived about four blocks from the Green Line Cafe at 3649 Lancaster Ave., which police say he robbed on April 30 and again on May 4. He is charged with robbery, assault and weapons charges in connection to those two robberies, one on April 26 at the Green Line Cafe near 45th and Locust and the May 6 robbery at the Chipotle Mexican Grill at 3925 Walnut St.

Police say Myer suffered from a “drug problem,” which in part explained his motives in the robberies.

He is scheduled to be arraigned later today.

 
Detective Joe Murray, aka “The Fuzz,” is back on Twitter, only this time with a much less catchy handle.

As of about 4 p.m. yesterday Murray is now @ppdjoemurray, a much more official name that reflects the Philadelphia Police Department’s endorsement of his social media stardom. In fact, Murray will be helping out others in the department to use Twitter more effectively.

Murray received dozens of tweets welcoming him back within the first few hours that he was online. Those who followed him before will automatically be switched over to the new account.

An online petition started by West Philly resident Amara Rockar earlier this month drew attention around the city and likely factored into getting Murray back online.

The only question that remains is … Can we still call him “The Fuzz?”

Southwest Philly’s tweeting detective, Joe Murray, whose updates on Twitter have helped people in the neighborhood keep up with crime trends and have helped make him a local celebrity, has suspended his account until he gets the go ahead from the department’s top brass.

Murray said by e-mail that some inadvisable uses of social media within the Philadelphia Police Department recently prompted him to send a memo to police Commissioner Charles Ramsey seeking formal permission to continue his @thefuzz9143 Twitter account.

The Philadelphia Police Department has increased its use of social media in recent months and it has helped in solving crimes.

Murray said on Twitter that he will let followers know when he gets the go ahead to start tweeting again.

OK, here’s your chance to read about our vaunted neighborhood Southwest Detective Joe Murray, aka @TheFuzz9143, in action.

Murray and his former partner in Southwest Philly, Sgt. John Hoyt, agreed to serve as doughnut testers for a Philadelphia Inquirer review of Federal Donuts, the “new, fancy-pants doughnut and fried chicken shop in Pennsport.”

Murray on Federal’s Key Lime doughnut:

“It wasn’t overly tart. I won’t eat doughnuts with filling in them – you eat it and it’s all over you. It’s too much, it’s gross,” Murray said. “But this was absolutely perfect – the concept and texture. You get the crust and crumbs from it. It even had the little crisps on it.”

Murray and Hoyt were up front about the stereotype they were playing into, but both said they are way more of coffee snobs than doughnut snobs.

A 39-year-old man was robbed at gunpoint on the 200 block of S. 46th St. last night and this time it was not a BB gun. The man was shot in the foot when he resisted, according to police.

The victim told police he was walking along 46th Street between Spruce and Locust Streets near his home at about 10:45 p.m. when he was approached by two males ages 18-20 who asked him if he had a light for a cigarette. One of the young men then drew a grey handgun and demanded the man surrender his belongings. They took his wallet, which contained $70 cash and some credit cards, and searched through his pockets.

At one point, he told police, he resisted and the man holding the gun said, “This gun’s not fake,” and shot the man in the foot. Police found a shell casing near the scene but did not release the caliber of the gun.

The unidentified victim was transported to the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania and was in stable condition this morning, police said.

The incident was the latest in a string of gunpoint robberies in the area involving young men in their late teens. Some of those robberies have been committed with BB guns, some of which police have recovered. Also, a few victims in recent days have successfully fought back against would-be robbers. But police are asking people not to take chances. Here is a comment by Southwest Detective Joe Murray on the recent rash of gunpoint robberies.

Police supplied descriptions of the two suspects:

• Black male, dark skin. Height: 5-1 to 5-5. Thin build, closely cropped hair. Wearing a black t-shirt with white stripes.

• Black male, light skin. Height: 5-10. Thin build. Longer hair. Wearing a tan t-shirt with a tie-die pattern on it.

Police are reporting that two young men recently tried to rob two Russian nationals at gunpoint near the 4800 block of Walnut St. The Russians proceeded to beat the two men up and take their BB gun.

Police say the incident, which happened Thursday, was one of several robberies or attempted robberies on that day in the neighborhood. Thursday’s robberies are part of a rash of robberies over the last few days. Most have been clustered within a six-block radius of 48th and Baltimore. Below are details on some of them. The information comes from a combination of police reports, an anonymous e-mail to westphillylocal.com and Southwest Detective Joe Murray’s must-read Twitter feed.

• Thursday, July 28 – A 25-year-old man was approached near 49th and Cedar at about 1 a.m. by a 19-year-old carrying a black handgun. The victim fled on foot but was cornered by a second young male. Both men beat him up and stole his cell phone, which was valued at $215.

• Thursday, July 28 – A 32-year-old female was approached by two males near 48th and Cedar at 12:13 p.m. One male grabbed her purse. The woman fought back, but the two men fled with her car keys. The woman refused to file a report.  A witness, who asked that her name not be used, e-mailed us with some details on this one. She wrote:

“Two women and a twelve week old infant in a baby carriage were mugged in the middle of the day on Thursday, July 28th. The thief was carrying a gun and approached from behind on the south side of the 4800 block of Cedar.”

• Thursday, July 28 – Three armed and masked young men entered the Fresh Deli (4832 Baltimore Ave.) and attempted to rob it at about 10:30 p.m.. The owner, who was unarmed, chased the men out. Detective Murray wrote: “He’s lucky.”

• Thursday, July 28 – Plainclothes officers from the 18th District arrested a man who had broken into a home at about 1 p.m. and stolen a laptop and iPod. The items were returned to the owner.

Murray also warned residents that it’s not a good idea to fight back against armed robbers, despite the success by some folks above. He wrote: “Two robberies I posted had unarmed people fighting people with guns. Don’t roll the dice on it being a fake gun..plenty of real ones out there.”