on 02-05-2009 02:45

By  DONNA KENNY KIRWAN

PAWTUCKET - A trained police dog helped track down an 18-year-old suspect wanted in Tuesday night's armed robbery of a pizza delivery man, and police are looking at whether the young man is involved in several similar incidents that have taken place.

According to Detectives Lt. Daniel Mullen, a driver for Village Pizza was making a delivery to a house at 25 Brown Street at around 6:48 p.m.  According to the police report, the victim told police he had pulled over near 17 Brown St. to check the address when he was approached by a black male suspect.
Thinking this was his customer, the delivery man said he had reached over to get the pizza when he heard the man yell "money." When he looked up, the suspect was pointing a small black handgun at him. The victim said he gave the man about $25 cash and the suspect fled on foot, heading west on Brown Street. The victim said that when the suspect was about 15 feet away, he heard what sounded like a gunshot.
According to police, officers responded quickly and stopped all vehicle and foot traffic from entering Brown Street. Officer Ernie Pendergrass, and his trained police dog, BAK, arrived on the scene to assist.
The dog lead police officers on a track that went west on Brown Street and then north on West Avenue, stopping directly outside the door of an apartment house at at 126 West Ave, police said.
When officers went inside, they followed wet footprints that stopped at a second floor apartment.

Once inside, police found the the suspect, who was with some relatives, and took him into custody. They also seized a cell phone, cash, and other evidence related to the crime.

The suspect, identified as Joseph F. Duarte, of 46 Lonsdale Ave., 2nd, Pawtucket, was charged with one count of robbery--second degree. He is also being questioned in possible connection with one or more other armed robberies of food delivery drivers that have taken place in the last two weeks, Mullen said.
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