Gunmen Storm Orange Line Train, Beat and Rob Passengers

UPDATE 3: City Paper article cites MPD report, saying a gun was involved in an incident similar to the one described below.

UPDATE 2 From Metro:
On Dec. 23, Metro Transit Police responded immediately to a report of a robbery that had just taken place, and within 30 minutes the suspects were positively identified, arrested and the stolen property recovered.

In an effort to address crime in the Metro system, the MTPD recently reassigned sworn officers out of administrative functions and office buildings into stations, trains and buses to better protect our customers from crime and to increase their ability to respond as quickly as possible. Here is a good example of how that redeployment makes a difference.

Background:

Police responded immediately to a call for robbery on an Orange Line train between Stadium-Armory and Minnesota Ave stations on Dec. 23. Two victims reported that while on board a train, two males stole a cell phone and a shopping bag containing recently purchased clothing and exited the train at Minnesota Avenue. The victims exited at the Cheverly station, where they reported the crime.

Metro Transit Police stopped the suspects in Northeast Washington, DC, near the Minnesota Avenue station a few minutes later and were able to get positive identification from the victims.

Police recovered the stolen property and charged the two 17-year-old males with robbery.

The victims did not report the use of a weapon during the incident. The victims were treated for minor lacerations at the station.

UPDATE
Correction: Witness is not a minor.
Also, see comments regarding lack of media coverage.

ORIGINAL POST:
The following was witnessed by a minor who wishes to remain anonymous and does not want to talk to the press. The witness related the details below to their parents who passed them to Unsuck DC Metro. Metro confirms the incident took place, but would provide no details other than saying they'd taken two juveniles into custody.

On Dec. 23, 2010, between 6 and 6:30 p.m., six masked, armed men boarded a New Carrollton bound Orange Line at Stadium Armory and proceeded to rob--at gunpoint--passengers of their wallets, cell phones, iPods, shoes and other valuables.

Three of the men entered through the front door of the car, and the other three entered through the last door of the same car.

Some of the male passengers were ordered to the ground, and some of the robbers kicked them repeatedly. Some were kicked to the point that they were bleeding from their wounds, primarily head wounds.

One woman tried pushing the emergency button several times, but never got a response from any Metro employee.

The car was pretty crowded, and even had children on board. The witness said some people didn't even seem aware of what was happening. The witness said there was a couple with children who where letting the kids play in the aisle. They had yet to notice the robbery taking place. The witness quietly told the mother what was happening and said she needed to get her children to come over to her and keep them quiet. The mother did so, and that family was not harassed by the robbers.

The witness managed to clandestinely call 911 while they were still on board, but hung up on the 911 personnel because they wanted to call someone to let them know where they were because they felt like they were going to die on the train.

The men jumped off at the next station and ran.

Many of the passengers got off at that station, too, but the witness stayed on the train, thinking they didn't want to go where the perps had just gone.

Metro police did not get in touch with with the witness. After they spoke with the 911 operator, the witness never heard from anyone.

Other items:
Sarles likely next GM (Examiner)
Escalator relief coming to Foggy Bottom (WMATA)
DC area has worst gridlock (WaPo)