Deputies make arrest days after 9-year-old robbed at lemonade stand

UNION COUNTY, N.C. — North Carolina authorities arrested a juvenile Wednesday they say robbed a 9-year-old lemonade vendor of $17 at gunpoint, a stickup that prompted an outpouring of sympathy and donations for the young entrepreneur.

Detectives said they obtained security camera footage of a person matching the suspect's description near where the robbery happened.

The suspect, identified as a male, was arrested without incident.

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The suspect's identity was being withheld under North Carolina law. Detectives working with the state's Department of Juvenile Justice obtained petitions charging the juvenile with robbery with a dangerous weapon and possession of drug paraphernalia, authorities said.

The young vendor, Mark David, told sheriff's deputies he was held up at gunpoint Saturday while selling lemonade at a traffic circle not far from the entrance to his community in Monroe. Investigators subsequently said they were seeking a male suspect.

"I opened the box, he grabbed it, pushed the gun at me and ran away," David said.

Neighbors said David has bounced back after the crime though and set up his lemonade stand again on Sunday.

WSOC learned the boy was saving his money in order to buy a lawnmower. Mooresville-based Lowe's heard about the story and donated a new-pony model riding lawnmower to him.

“It's pretty cool what you're trying to do at such a young age, and tell you what, it's pretty awesome to be a part of it," Lowe’s store manager Chris Beatty said.

 

Cox Media Group