Detectives with the Loudoun County sheriff's department have released a sketch of a man that they say may be responsible for up to four armed robberies in the Sterling, Va., area.
Authorities say the robber approaches women when they are alone, pulling out a gun and demanding they hand over their wallets.
Two such incidents happened over the past week in the Remington Apartment Homes community, reports News4's Darcy Spencer. In one of those cases, he told the victim to hand over her jacket as well as her wallet.
Community residents say they're alarmed. "It's all families with small children [here], so to hear something like that, it's very, very surprising, especially [because] my wife is usually walking to work," said one neighbor. "We're going to have to make sure we're, you know, on our guard."
Another man said, "My girlfriend lives out here and she's always out here walking her dog. And you know, I kind of worry about her sometimes. I'll definitely let her know to be very vigilant when out here and just basically check around corners and things, and be safe."
The suspect is described as 5'8" with a medium build.
Authorities believe the same man may have committed two similar robberies back in December a few miles away.
In one of those cases, he forced a woman on Lynnhave Square to drop the things she was holding and take off some of her clothes.
Later on the same day, he pointed a gun at another woman who was unloading groceries on McKean Court. She screamed, and the man fled.
