A visit to a local CVS store for her daughter’s craving for a late-night
snack turned out to be a traumatic event for one Boynton Beach woman.
Just after 9:00 p.m. Wednesday night, Gyasi Stevenson drove to her local
CVS store on North Federal Highway to satisfy her 15-year-old daughter’s
craving for a late-night snack. Leaving her daughter in the car and knowing
exactly what she wanted, she headed to the freezer section of the store.
When she located the desired frozen lasagna and opened the door of the
freezer, someone grabbed her purse saying, “Give me that purse!”
At first, according to the police report, Stevenson thought the man was
joking around, but then noting the look in his eyes, she knew he was not.
The alleged purse snatcher, 49-year-old Ricky Smith, and Stevenson began
a tugging contest over her purse when Smith was able to rip the purse
from her grasp and ran for the front door of the store. Although Stevenson
was tempted to run after Smith, she thought it would be wiser to scream.
Fortunately for Stevenson, two CVS employees, Robert Estime and Givenchy
Delva, heard the screams and came to her rescue. They tackled Smith to
the ground and, according to the Boynton Beach Police report, held him
there until police arrived on the scene of the crime.
The manager of the store told Stevenson to get behind the counter while
the two men struggled with Smith. Smith, according to the victim, told
the men pinning him to the ground to ‘let him go, claiming he was
innocent, that he hadn’t robbed the woman, that she gave me the
bag.’
When officers arrived on the scene, they arrested Smith and booked him
in the Palm Beach County Jail, charging him with robbery. According to
the arrest report, Smith has been arrested thirteen times since 1995 on
various crimes that include robbery. The alleged robber remains in jail
without bond.