A Knoxville man was robbed at gunpoint by two men early Tuesday morning at a female friend’s apartment.  Twenty-six year old Travis Braunm of Thompson Road told detectives with the Knox County Sheriff’s Office that he went to his friend’s apartment at Virginia Walker Apartments around 2:00 a.m. and was met at the door by two men he didn’t know and was told that his friend was upstairs and would be down shortly.  He said that one of the men pulled a gun on him and the two then forced him upstairs.  Braunm told detectives that the men tied his hands with a lamp cord and stole his wallet containing $1,800, car keys, and a cell phone.

Braunm said after the men left, he watched from a window as they searched his car and stole a handgun from the trunk.  He said he saw them leave in a silver Lincoln with a vinyl top.  The female friend was not in the apartment at the time of the robbery.

One of the suspects is described as a white male, around 5’8” and 170 pounds with brown hair.  The other is described as a black male, 6 feet tall, and 200 pounds with black hair.  Anyone with information is asked to call the Knox County Sheriff’s Office at 215-2243.

The Knoxville Police Department and the Knox County Sheriff’s Office in a joint operation are cracking down on shoplifters.  Thirty three people were arrested over a three day period at the end of last week.  Eight of those were juveniles.  Officers targeted eleven different stores last Thursday, Friday and Saturday in the East, West, and Farragut. They recovered approximately $9,000 worth of stolen merchandise.

Sheriff Jimmy “J.J.” Jones and Police Chief Sterling Owen, IV say they are pleased with the results of this joint investigation and will continue the crackdown through the holiday season.