3 local teens accused of using a knife to rob others at bus stops

Police say they were teenagers gone bad who would allegedly pull a knife and rob kids waiting for the local ALEX bus. In at least one robbery, a suspect has been accused of holding a knife to a young victim's throat.

For all their trouble, police said the three usually ended up with little more than pocket change and a cell phone. No one was hurt in the string of robberies that began last month, but the potential for a tragedy was clear.

Now the three teens, all from Ahwatukee Foothills, are sitting behind bars, booked on four felony counts of armed robbery.

According to Phoenix police, in custody are Devin Eubanks, 16, Matthew Roggin, 17, and Ian Crawford, 16. Crawford attends Desert Vista High School and the other two attend Compadre, an alternative high school operated by the Tempe Union High School District.

One robbery occurred on the Warner-Elliot Loop, another on Lakewood Parkway and another at Frye Road and 32nd Street. All of the alleged robberies occurred in October.

Sgt. Frank Matsko, who leads a squad of patrol officers assigned to Ahwatukee Foothills, said the methods the three used were similar.

"Basically one pulls a knife on the victim while one pats them down," he said. "They are taking whatever the kids have, which isn't much, maybe a cell phone and few dollars."

Tempe Union High School District spokeswoman Linda Littell wouldn't comment on the student's specific circumstances, but did say that disciplinary action would take place after the students had a hearing and that for such serious charges expulsion would probably be appropriate.

According to Sgt. Tommy Thompson, a police spokesman, the three were located after officers assigned to the Neighborhood Enforcement Team began focusing on the string of robberies. By questioning victims and following up on leads, the officers identified and then arrested the three Nov. 7.

The NET squad is the same group of officers that found and arrested Henry Diaz Jr., accused of robbing a string of Ahwatukee Foothills and Tempe businesses using a sawed-off shotgun. He faces three counts of armed robbery, two counts of attempted armed robbery and two counts of kidnapping.