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3 arrested after series of armed robberies, including at UNC Charlotte

By Glenn Counts, wsoctv.com
By Glenn Counts, wsoctv.com

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Officials at UNC Charlotte have alerted students to an armed robbery that happened overnight on campus.

Authorities said that around 1:40 a.m., two UNCC students were robbed at gunpoint behind the Student Union near the loading dock area.

Lester McClendon, 21, Jwuan Horton, 19, and Ulondis R-quan Edwards, 18, have been arrested after a series of armed robberies, including one on the campus of UNC Charlotte.

The victims, who spoke with Channel 9 reporter Glenn Counts, are juniors and did not want to be identified.

"It's definitely a life-changing experience. Something you won't forget," one victim said.

The two students had a late night of studying. They were walking down a sidewalk heading home when the armed robbers came up from behind.

"The gun was already pointed at him,” one of the victims said. “When I turned around, they had already taken my stuff."

After those moments of terror, the students were calm enough to get the tag on the robbers' car. The students used a campus emergency phone and gave a good description to police.

"That was fast, you know, when these systems work, they work great,” UNCC Police Chief Jeff Baker said. “This is what you want. You want to get the word out."

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Ulondis

 Edwards, Lester McClendon,

Jwuan

 Horton)

The students were not hurt.

The victims described the robbers as African-American men dressed in dark clothing. Police said that after robbing the students, the suspects jumped into a dark gray Ford Focus and sped off.

The men are also accused of robbing a 7-Eleven later Thursday morning on Brookshire Boulevard, and they were arrested shortly after 6 a.m.

A short time later, officers were called to a home in the 1800 block of Garibaldi Avenue in reference to locating a vehicle that matched the description given by UNCC Police regarding the armed robbery.

There, officers detained two men identified as McClendon and Horton.

During an investigation, officers found Edwards as a third suspect.  Detectives were further able to conclude that Edwards was at the Office of Probation and Parole on E. 4th Street.  Detectives coordinated efforts with Probation and Parole Officers, who took Edwards into custody without incident.  He was then transported to police headquarters where he was interviewed by Armed Robbery Detectives.

Edwards, Horton and McClendon have been charged with three counts of conspiracy to commit armed robbery with a dangerous weapon and three counts of armed robbery with a dangerous weapon.

School officials told Channel 9 that this is the first robbery to take place on campus in three years.

Anyone with information about the crime is asked to call UNCC police at 704-687-2200.

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