SANFORD, Fla. – A couple has been arrested and charged in the string of armed robberies in downtown Sanford, according to the Sanford Police Department.
Police said Diquan Daravius Walker, 21, robbed a man at gunpoint Dec. 18 and pistol-whipped a clergyman at Iglesia Vida Neuva Church on Dec. 31. The victims handed over their cellphones and wallets in both incidents.
Police also arrested Walker's pregnant girlfriend, Lizbet Martinez Friday in connection with the robberies, Sanford police said.
Walker was identified as a suspect Thursday afternoon and then arrested by the neighborhood-response unit about three hours later.
After interviewing Walker and Martinez, police said that Walker was responsible for seven armed robberies in the Historic District of Sanford, and Martinez aided him by selecting the victims and later using their credit cards.
Erna Walker said she saw her grandson, Walker, a couple of hours before his arrest. She didn't know he was in any sort of trouble.
“I gave him some food and dropped him off,” Erna Walker said. “He just said he need a dollar to get a drink. … I was really shocked. I never anticipated (his arrest).
"I've never known him to rob people, but you know you can't watch them 24-7."
She said she found out police were searching for her grandson not long after she dropped him off at a store.
"I went down to the police station,” she said. “I said, ‘I'll take you where I put him out at, because I don't want nothing to happen to him.’ They said he's armed and dangerous. The first thing is, they might shoot.”
But when Erna Walker arrived her grandson was already in police custody.
She said it's just hard to believe Walker could be armed and dangerous.
"Diquan, if you done this stuff, you know better and it's not to be tolerated,” Walker said. “You did the crime, you gonna do the time.”
Walker is charged with two counts of armed robbery and police said more charges are pending.
Martinez is charged with two counts of fraud and accessory to the armed robbery.