Men wanted for stealing purse at gunpoint charged in two other Fayetteville robberies

Authorities said the woman was walking out of a Food Lion store at 7071 Raeford Road at about 8 a.m. when the two men drove up next to the spot where her vehicle was parked.

One man exited the car, pointed a handgun at the woman’s head and began pulling her purse from her shopping cart, police said.

Authorities said the man took the purse and the men fled from the area on Raeford Road toward Hoke County.

The men were identified Monday as Thomas Eugene Skipper, 26, and Jason Allen Gates, 28.

In the process of investigating the incident at Food Lion, police discovered Skipper and Gates were involved in two other robberies early Sunday morning.

At about 2 a.m., a person was exiting the Pour House at 2917 Sigman Street when a man approached him and asked for a light for his cigarette. The victim was then struck on the head and knocked to the ground, where Skipper and Gates stole jewelry and a cell phone before fleeing.

At about 2:45 a.m., an employee of B&B Bowling Lanes at 3003 Ft. Bragg Road was taking out the trash when Skipper and Gates approached him, armed with handguns. The pair struck the man on the head, causing minor injuries, before taking his money and keys to the business.

The men, who were located in Mount Olive, were both charged with three counts each of robbery with a dangerous weapon and felonious conspiracy to commit robbery.

Both men were being held at the Duplin County Detention Center on Monday night.