Seattle Police are investigating two robberies of groups of middle school students in or near Roxhill Park in the last week. The students were identified by Denny International Middle School Principal Jeff Clark in a statement released today. (See below)

Here are the details from SPD's Blotter:

Police are looking for a pair of armed gunman, who have held up two groups of middle schoolers in Roxhill Park in West Seattle

The first robbery happened around 6:30 pm on January 20th, when two suspects pulled a shotgun on a group of four middle schoolers, near 27th Avenue S.W. and S.W. Cambridge Street, and told the victims to hand over their wallets and cell phones.

The suspect carrying the shotgun then struck two of the victims in the head with the butt of the gun, leaving the victims with cuts and bruises.

After taking the victims’ cellphones and cash, the suspects fled through Roxhill Park.

Two days later, a group of five middle schoolers were hanging out in the park at about 3 pm when the two suspects—who were wearing red bandannas over their faces—walked up to the victims, pulled out handguns, and told the group to get on the ground.

Again, the suspects fled after stealing cellphones and cash from the victims.

The victims ran to Westwood Village, where they called 911.

Victims in both cases were only able to provide vague descriptions of the suspects: black males, between 16 and 17 years old.

Police are now investigating the two incidents.

The statement from Denny International Middle School Principal Jeff Clark:

As a result of Denny International Middle School students being the victims of recent crimes in the Roxhill Park area, we are contacting all families to remind them of safety-related recommendations for walking to and from school. Recommendations include walking with other students and heading directly home.

We have contacted the Seattle Police Department and have learned that a detective has been assigned to these cases. If anyone sees any suspicious behavior on the part of anyone in our community, we encourage you to call 911. Also, as always, if any student has any problem on the way to or from school, please tell any staff member at school. Tomorrow, Seattle Public Schools central office will be sending home a letter to all families with children who attend schools in the area.

Sincerely,

Jeff Clark, Principal
Denny International Middle School