The three suspects in the barber shop armed robbery that escalated into an hours-long standoff in Boston's Dorchester neighborhood Thursday night have been identified, making their first appearances in court Friday where family members' emotions boiled over.
Hendrick Davis, 41, of Brockton; Eric Hines, 32, of Roslindale; and James Mendes, 32, of Randolph; were arrested Thursday night in connection with the incident that lasted about five hours, beginning at Edwards Barber Shop on Blue Hill Avenue and ending at a home on Adams Street, Boston police say.
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All three were charged with larceny of a firearm; armed robbery; carry a firearm without a license; breaking and entering daytime for felony and assault with a dangerous weapon. Mendes was also charged with kidnapping, while Davis was also charged with possession with intent to distribute Class A and possession with intent to distribute Class B.
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NBC10 Boston cameras were unable to capture the arraignment on video Friday as Hines, Mendes, and Davis appeared in Roxbury District Court due to their emotional family members who sent the courtroom into a brief recess as court officers and the judge attempted to regain order.
While the outburst kept our cameras out, we were still able to listen as prosecutors detailed the events leading up to their arrests. They say the three were armed with guns as they entered Edwards Barber Shop and started stealing jewelry, money and other personal items from the shop's owner and store customers around 4 p.m. Thursday.
Officers responded to the scene, and detectives were able to obtain video surveillance from inside the business, immediately recognizing two of the suspects, police said.
Detectives also utilized City of Boston cameras to obtain a partial plate of the suspects' fleeing vehicle.
Authorities tracked an Apple watch that was stolen from one of the barber shop victims to the area of Adams Street, where officers located the suspects' vehicle in the driveway of 86 Adams Street and determined all three suspects involved in the armed robbery were inside the apartment building, police said.
A perimeter was established outside, and a SWAT team and negotiators were called to the scene.
After negotiation efforts, one of the suspects was taken into custody, police said. A short time after, a second suspect was taken into custody. According to officials, Hines and Davis had been inside the apartment of a person known to them, and they were removed without incident.
The third suspect, however, refused to exit an apartment, and a forced entry was made by SWAT in order to take Mendes into custody. Officials say he told the tenant to tell police that he was her boyfriend, even though she did not know him. Police removed the woman and her three children from the apartment before arresting Mendes.
During the booking process, officers located two plastic bags of a brown rock substance, and five plastic bags of hard rock substance, police said. The bags were believed to be drugs and were packaged in separate plastic bags.
The involved apartments were secured pending a search warrant, and officers were still on scene Friday morning, where yellow tape remained outside the Adams Street building as the investigation continues.
All three men were ordered held without bail Friday pending dangerousness hearings on July 23.
