A man was hospitalized after being beaten and robbed near Calhoun Square on Hennepin Avenue last week, police said. It was one of a series of violent robberies of pedestrians in Uptown last week.
Aron Willis, 30, told police he was walking north on the sidewalk near W. 31st St. just after midnight Wednesday when he heard someone behind him say, "Hey." He turned and was punched several times in the head, according to police. The attacker, a white man with blonde hair, stole Willis' cellphone and wallet.
Robbers similarly struck pedestrians from behind last week in a series of attacks that police said may be linked to the same group of suspects.
The Hennepin Avenue assault occurred just hours after a man was attacked in the 2500 block of Pillsbury Avenue S. by at least two men believed to be responsible for at least four Uptown robberies last week. That victim pulled a gun on the robbers and fired three times before they ran off.
MATT MCKINNEY
