Four Men Charged with Armed Robbery in Annandale

Four men from Prince George's County and Charles County in Maryland were charged with armed robbery after a police officer interrupted a transaction in progress Monday in the Little River Run Shopping Center in Annandale.

Marion Kenneth Allen, Jr., 22, Cye Adam Penn, 22, Bryant Robinson, 19, and Xavier Hall, 22 were charged with robbery, use of a firearm in commission of a felony and abduction, according to a news release from the Fairfax County Police Department.

A 15-year-old boy placed an ad online advertising Nike tennis shoes for sale and agreed to meet a buyer at the shopping center around 10:50 p.m. on Monday, according to the news release.

A police officer on patrol in the shopping center, at the 7400 block of Little River Turnpike, spotted a suspicious car in the parking lot without its lights on. The teen signaled to an officer, from the passenger seat of the vehicle, that he needed help.

The officer discovered there was a gun in the car and performed a "high-risk stop," which according Lucy Caldwell, the FCPD Public Information spokesperson, occurs when additonal officers are called to the scene often due to the presence of a weapon.

Following the stop, all four suspects were taken into custody.

FCPD warns all residents using online services to be cautious during transactions when buying or selling products by meeting during daylight hours, never alone, and in a public place. Transactions with strangers can be risky and all those involved need to take precautions to protect their safety, the release states.

Get daily and breaking news email updates from Annandale Patch by signing up for newsletters here.