Police in Burlington have announced the arrest of a man who allegedly pilfered a local tobacconist earlier this week.
Reginald Alfie Ti-wan Francis was taken into custody on Tuesday after officers identified him as the culprit in the strong-arm robbery, which occurred at Tobacco & Vape at about 4:00 p.m. on Monday.
A 24-year-old black male, whose address is listed variously as 1943 McKinney Street and 706 Huffman Mill Road, Francis appears to have entered the business at 550 Huffman Mill Road clad in a surgical mask and something that resembles a shower cap, according to surveillance footage that the police department has previously shared with the public. Court records suggest that Francis went on to rob the proprietor of the business of $225.89 in cash as well as a “black and mild cigar.”
The city’s police department has charged Francis with common law robbery for the alleged theft of these items. It has also filed an additional charge of breaking and entering over a break-in that occurred at the Brittany Apartments on the same day as Tobacco & Vape robbery. In the meantime, the agency has lodged two felony drug charges for substances that Francis reportedly had in his possession, which were subsequently identified as fentanyl and MDMA, according to one of the police department’s arrest warrants.
Francis has been placed under a $15,000 bond for the alleged B&E and the common law robbery, while court records for his drug charges suggest that another $10,000 has been tacked onto that sum.
