A Memphis man allegedly behind a string of armed robberies, including the Saturday holdup of a Vaiden gas station, has been arrested in New Orleans.
The suspect, 29-year-old Westlee Osborne, was found hiding in a motel swimming pool in eastern New Orleans Sunday evening following a car crash, high-speed chase and failed robbery in nearby Chalmette.
Authorities in Carroll County believe Osborne also was behind the robbery of the Vaiden Exxon station at around 6 p.m. Saturday, when he allegedly entered the store wielding what appeared to be a gun and sped south on Interstate 55 with between $8,000 and $9,000.
Carroll County Sheriff Jerry Carver said Osborne was identified from security footage at the Exxon station as the same man behind another stickup at a gas station in Senatobia earlier the same day. Video from the Senatobia robbery was shared on Facebook, Carver said, allowing investigators at his office to make the match.
Footage from another gas station in Pike County also appears to implicate Osborne in another robbery later Saturday, Carver said, drawing a dotted line of alleged crimes on Osborne’s journey from Memphis toward New Orleans.
According to a press release from the St. Bernard Parish Sheriff’s Department in Louisiana, Osborne is also suspected in the robbery of a convenience store early Sunday morning in New Orleans, where he allegedly asked the clerk for cigarettes before pulling a gun and making off with about $1,500.
That evening, according to St. Bernard Parish authorities, Osborne allegedly walked into another gas station in Chalmette and flashed a gun, but the clerk refused to turn over any cash.
Osborne then tried to flee empty-handed, pursued by the clerk who, wielding a staple gun, managed to crack the rear window of Osborne’s car.
As he drove away from the scene, he was spotted by a Louisiana state trooper and local sheriff’s deputies, who chased Osborne at speeds topping 100 miles per hour before he crashed while speeding the wrong way down a New Orleans highway.
Police caught him hiding out at a nearby motel and recovered more than $3,000 in cash from the vehicle, a silver Ford rental car with Tennessee plates. Before being taken to jail, Osborne was treated at a New Orleans hospital for injuries suffered in the wreck.
Carver said Carroll County investigators are in the process of filing formal charges and requesting Osborne’s extradition to Mississippi to face charges on the Vaiden armed robbery.
He’s currently being held in custody in New Orleans on charges of armed robbery, attempted armed robbery, two counts of negligent injuring, aggravated flight from an officer and criminal trespass. Bond has been set at $195,000.
According to the St. Bernard Parish Sheriff’s Department, Osborne had been on parole for an aggravated assault conviction in Tennessee.
Carver said Osborne will likely face charges in Louisiana first before being turned over to authorities in Mississippi.
“It’s possible he may be wanted in some more places as well,” Carver said. “As more people see (the security footage), there may be more charges in other jurisdictions.”
• Contact Bryn Stole at 581-7235 or bstole@gwcommonwealth.com.
