Three juveniles ages 11 to 13 were the victims of separate robberies during a 20-hour span in the city of Richmond.
Two of the victims were slightly injured when they were struck in the head by robbers, police said.
In all three cases, the robbers -- like their victims -- were believed to be juveniles. Two arrests were made.
Though Richmond police do not have statistics on the number of juvenile crime victims readily available, Capt. David L. Martin said it's a more common occurrence than some might think.
"The problem is a lot of them don't get reported," he said.
Martin said robberies of juveniles tend to be committed by other juveniles and frequently involve the theft of bicycles.
The most recent robbery occurred Tuesday at 4:15 p.m., when an 11-year-old was pushing his bike home from school and was confronted in the 4300 block of Chamberlayne Avenue by two juveniles believed to be 12-14 years old, Martin said.
The two robbers grabbed his bicycle, threatened to punch him in the face, took the bicycle and left, Martin said.
Other valuables were sought in the earlier robberies.
The first occurred Monday about 8 p.m. in the 1700 block of Clarkson Road, in the Communities at Southwood apartment complex in South Richmond.
Martin said a group of four robbers approached a 12-year-old and one struck him in the head with a handgun before they forced him to remove his pants. Finding no valuables, the robbers fled.
Martin said two juveniles -- one 15, the other 16 -- were arrested by police after a foot pursuit and charged with robbery. A third suspect was being sought.
The victim's head wound was not serious.
On Tuesday morning, a 13-year-old boy was walking to school when he was confronted by three boys, believed to be 15-16 years old, in the 4000 block of Moss Side Avenue in North Richmond, Martin said. The victim was punched in the face by robbers, who demanded and received what little money the boy had.
Authorities at the victim's school later noticed that he was acting unusually, and he told them about the robbery. His mother took him to a hospital to be checked, Martin said.
Contact Joe Macenka at (804) 649-6804 or jmacenka@timesdispatch.com.
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