Police nab five in robbery attempt

Cheney police officers arrested five individuals in conjunction with an armed robbery that took place early Saturday morning.

About 2:20 a.m. the department received a call from the 700 block of Chestnut Street that two males, one armed with a small caliber handgun, had gotten into a black, four-door vehicle and left the scene. The robbery victims pursued the vehicle, keeping police informed on where they were.

Eastern Washington University Police encountered the suspect vehicle in the area of Erie and Cedar streets, turned on their lights and attempted to initiate a traffic stop. The vehicle then sped away at speeds approaching 60 mph, eventually encountering a Cheney Police vehicle six blocks away on the 1500 block of Washington.

The police vehicle forced the suspect car to pull to the right and stop, at which point the passenger in the front seat attempted to flee on foot, eventually being apprehended by a Cheney officer in the 200 block of North Eleventh Street. Police subsequently arrested the driver of the vehicle, Eric M. Polch, 22, for first-degree robbery and attempting to elude police, along with his passenger, Frankie L. Breland, 22, for first-degree robbery.

Also arrested for first-degree robbery were two 16-year-old males and a 13-year-old male.

All suspects were taken into custody. Cheney Police Cmdr. Rick Campbell said the investigation into the incident is still ongoing.

“Even though there were arrests made we’ve still got a lot of things to get done,” Campbell said. “It’s a complicated case.

Campbell added that additional charges could be forthcoming.

John McCallum can be reached at jmac@cheneyfreepress.com.