Teen Held In Armed Robbery At Pedersen Park

Detectives are still searching for the second of two suspects who robbed a couple at gunpoint on top of the Linda Pedersen Park watchtower late Sunday night.

It was about 10:20 p.m. when two men wearing dark hooded sweatshirts approached a man and a woman on the top observation deck of the 40-foot tall tower. One of them pulled out a gun, racked the slide and held it to the man's head while demanding money, an affidavit states.

The victim only had car keys in his pocket, so the suspects grabbed those and fled in the victim's 1992 BMW, according to an affidavit.

The victims cried out for help as the suspects fled, and witnesses at the Jenkins Creek pier across the street tried to follow the suspects. The driver of the stolen BMW made it as far as the intersection of Shoal Line Boulevard and Wimberly Court before crashing the car. Both suspects fled on foot.

One of the suspects, 19-year-old Jaime Marquez, jumped into the Weekiwachee River and emerged two blocks away. He asked for a ride from a resident on Wimberly Court, but the resident only held him until authorities arrived.

The victims said they were "fairly certain" that Marquez was one of the suspects.

Marquez was taken to the sheriff's office for questioning, where he told investigators he was nearly robbed at the park and he fell into the water trying to elude his attackers, a report states.

Detectives didn't believe him and charged Marquez of 4369 Candler Ave. with armed robbery, grand theft auto and violation of probation. The other suspect remained at large Thursday afternoon.

Roy Link, parks & waterways maintenance manager, said Tuesday that the tower is technically only open from sunup to sundown, but there is no fence to keep out the public.

Two 400-watt lights were installed at the top of the tower just last week to curb vandalism and for extra security, Link said.

Detectives are still searching for the second of two suspects who robbed a couple at gunpoint on top of the Linda Pedersen Park watchtower late Sunday night.

It was about 10:20 p.m. when two men wearing dark hooded sweatshirts approached a man and a woman on the top observation deck of the 40-foot tall tower. One of them pulled out a gun, racked the slide and held it to the man's head while demanding money, an affidavit states.

The victim only had car keys in his pocket, so the suspects grabbed those and fled in the victim's 1992 BMW, according to an affidavit.

The victims cried out for help as the suspects fled, and witnesses at the Jenkins Creek pier across the street tried to follow the suspects. The driver of the stolen BMW made it as far as the intersection of Shoal Line Boulevard and Wimberly Court before crashing the car. Both suspects fled on foot.

One of the suspects, 19-year-old Jaime Marquez, jumped into the Weekiwachee River and emerged two blocks away. He asked for a ride from a resident on Wimberly Court, but the resident only held him until authorities arrived.

The victims said they were "fairly certain" that Marquez was one of the suspects.

Marquez was taken to the sheriff's office for questioning, where he told investigators he was nearly robbed at the park and he fell into the water trying to elude his attackers, a report states.

Detectives didn't believe him and charged Marquez of 4369 Candler Ave. with armed robbery, grand theft auto and violation of probation. The other suspect remained at large Thursday afternoon.

Roy Link, parks & waterways maintenance manager, said Tuesday that the tower is technically only open from sunup to sundown, but there is no fence to keep out the public.

Two 400-watt lights were installed at the top of the tower just last week to curb vandalism and for extra security, Link said.