Harvey Robinson: Adolescent Serial Killer
Sting Operation
Two weeks had passed, and each night officers stayed inside the Cali home. No one knew if this plan would pay off, but they continued to watch. Then, around 1:30 a.m., Officer Lewis heard a noise: Someone was prying at the patio door. A few moments later, the front door handle jiggled, but did not give way. This was it: Someone was trying to get in. Lewis knew that some of the windows were open to make it easy to enter, and they were near lamps left burning, so he waited. A hand reached in through the living room window, wearing a black glove, and deftly removed the screen. Lewis crouched, ready to shoot. He pressed a button on a radio handset through which he could notify back-up without giving himself away and sent the emergency message. Help was on the way.
The window was quietly eased open and a thick-bodied man dressed in black shoved himself over the frame and into the room. He was young and short, just as Sam-Cali had described, and he was quick.
"Halt!" Lewis shouted as he rose to show himself. "Police!"
Though taken by surprise, the intruder sprinted past Lewis toward the dark kitchen and reached for a gun on his waistband. Lewis shot at him, but he kept running and returned the gunfire, forcing Lewis to take cover and shoot again. Lewis then stepped out and shot several times toward the kitchen, but he missed and the intruder managed to shoot at him again. Because he needed to reload, Lewis went to the bedroom to reassure the couple, and they could all hear the intruder banging on the deadbolted back door and kitchen walls, trying to get out. All reports agree that the house was literally shaking. Lewis instructed the Calis to stay out of the way as he prepared to face the desperate gunman. He was aware that backup had arrived and knew they would be circling the house, but suddenly the place went quiet.
Lewis edged cautiously toward the kitchen, uncertain what to expect and keeping his loaded gun drawn. As he drew closer, he anticipated that the guy might spring out at him or fire from some dark area, although, he too, may have emptied his gun during the shootout. Perhaps he was just hiding. Lewis neared the door to the kitchen, tense, his heart pounding, but when he still heard nothing, he wondered if the intruder had found a way out. Then he saw it: Several broken windows on the wooden door. The man had managed to force his way out and slip away, despite the officers who circled the house, although he'd left a lot of blood behind on the door. Lewis thought that perhaps he'd winged the guy.
Calls were quickly made to the consortium of Lehigh Valley hospitals to be on the lookout for anyone coming in with a bad cut or a bullet wound. This was the closest the police had come to nailing this offender, and they were excited. They were going to get him. It was just a matter of time, perhaps minutes.
Several hours went by without a word, but around 5:30 a.m., a young man showed up at the ER at Lehigh Valley Hospital to get his cuts treated. His arm and leg were bleeding badly. He seemed to realize that he'd walked into a trap, because he made for the exit without talking to anyone, but he was stopped before he got away. That was the end of the line for him, and the Calis were notified. There would be no more intrusions from this man into their home.
Lewis went to the hospital and quickly identified the man being held as the person who had shot at him hours earlier in the Cali residence. His name was Harvey Miguel "Miggy" Robinson, and he lived in the East Side vicinity with his mother, Barbara Brown. He was only eighteen, and he insisted he was innocent.