Two arrested in pair of Pine Bluff armed robberies

Two men have been arrested in a pair of armed robberies of Pine Bluff businesses over the weekend, authorities said.

Ben Murphy, 20, and Marquis Johnson, 18, are each facing two counts of aggravated robbery in the holdups Friday night at H&R Foods, 601 N. Hutchinson St., and Saturday night at the Alon gas station, 2401 E. Sixth St.

They remained in the Jefferson County jail Monday with bail not yet set after being arrested about midnight Saturday, authorities said.

Pine Bluff police said Murphy admitted being the driver in the Alon robbery and one of the robbers in the H&R Foods holdup.

Murphy reportedly had a large amount of cash on his person when he was stopped in a vehicle shortly after the Alon robbery. He told officers he was staying in a room at the Pine Bluff Inn and Suites, where police recovered clothing used in the robbery and an undisclosed amount of money, Lt. David Price said in a statement.

In each of the robberies, men armed with handguns escaped with cash from the business.

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