Woman robbed in Wildwood

A 44-year-old Wildwood woman was robbed at gunpoint on Sept. 13 as she attempted to close her home’s garage door. The robbery occurred just after midnight in the 2000 block of Medicine Bow Drive.

St. Louis County Police Officer Randy Vaughn described that assailants as two white males, one of whom was armed with a hand gun. At presstime, both were still at large.

Vaughn said the victim did nothing wrong.

“She pulled into her garage and attempted to close her garage door. The door began to come down, but then it went back up again. When she went to see what was blocking the door she was confronted by the robbers,” Vaughn said.

The robbers demanded money and the woman opened the trunk of her car to get her purse. Vaughn said that’s when the robbers grabbed both the purse and a stroller.

“I’m sure when we catch these guys – and we will catch them – there will be an interesting story in that,” Vaughn said.

He noted that this type of incident is “highly unusual for Wildwood” and that the community is made up of nice neighborhoods that are well patrolled. However, he stressed that every incident of crime reinforces that you can never be too careful.

“You think, ‘It will never happen to me,’” Vaughn said.

But he noted it’s better to be safe than sorry and he offered the following tips.

• Lights outside the house are a huge deterrent.

• Bad guys tend to avoid houses with no place to hide, so avoid planting giant bushes outside your home.

• Always lock your doors. That goes for car doors, too.

“It’s easy for would-be thieves to walk down the street and try the handles of cars on driveways or in the street,” Vaughn said. Why break glass and make a lot of noise if you don’t have to?”

• Be aware of your surroundings – both lights and open spaces aid in this area.