Suspect arrested in armed robberies

Police believe he's the "Redheaded Renegade,'' suspected of robbing almost 20 stores countywide.

By MIKE BRASSFIELD

© St. Petersburg Times, published May 25, 2000

Authorities say they've caught the armed robber dubbed the "Redheaded Renegade," suspected of robbing nearly 20 stores around Pinellas County.

Upon his arrest Wednesday night, 39-year-old Michael Lee Lewis was charged with the armed robberies of two Clearwater stores, a Largo business and an Entenmann's Bakery in unincorporated Pinellas County, said sheriff's Sgt. Greg Tita.

Police sometimes assign nicknames to repeat robbers to keep track of them and to publicize their movements.

They came up with "Redheaded Renegade" for a reddish-haired man thought to have been targeting secondhand stores, card shops and bakeries for about a year around St. Petersburg, Pinellas Park, Clearwater and Largo.

Detectives say the robber drives a black pickup truck, carries a silver revolver and typically robs stores that have one female clerk on duty. Lewis was arrested in his black Dodge pickup with a loaded .38-caliber revolver beside him on the front seat, Tita said.

Lewis had never been arrested before Sunday, when Pinellas Park police charged him with shoplifting at an Albertsons grocery store, Tita said. After his release, investigators learned his fingerprints matched those found after a March robbery at the Bakery on 49th Street, at 4620 49th St. N.

This week, four robbery victims identified Lewis from lineups of photographs, Tita said. The investigation will continue.

Lewis' last known address was 5915 18th St. N in Pinellas Park, but deputies say he was no longer living there. He was arrested about 8 p.m. Wednesday at 8329 Park Blvd.

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