Man charged in pair of armed robberies at Berkeley Co. stores

A 26-year-old man accused of robbing two Berkeley County businesses at gunpoint within the last several days was arrested Wednesday and charged with two counts of first-degree robbery, according to court records.

Michael Scott Stilwell of no fixed address was being held in Eastern Regional Jail Wednesday night on a $100,000 bond set by Berkeley County Magistrate Joan V. Bragg, according to court and jail records.


Stilwell provided a Raleigh Street address in Martinsburg when he applied for a court-appointed attorney in his arraignment hearing, according to court documents.

Armed with what appeared to be a black handgun, the robber took $750 from the H-Mart convenience store at 1501 New York Ave. In the south end of Martinsburg last Thursday and $200 from the Dollar Stretcher at 9600 Winchester Ave. in Bunker Hill, W.Va., on Sunday, according to court documents.

The H-Mart robbery happened about 8:45 p.m., and police responded to the Bunker Hill business at 3:55 p.m., according to court documents and police.

Police said the H-Mart robber was wearing sunglasses, a black hooded sweatshirt and white sneakers when he entered the business, displayed what appeared to be a handgun and demanded money from the clerk, who gave the robber the cash, according to court records.

A cashier at Dollar Stretcher told police the robber there approached the counter holding what appeared to be a black gun and ordered her to give him money out of the cash drawer.

The clerk gave the robber the money and then asked if he would like a bag, according to court records.

The robber said "no" and then he fled on foot north on the Winchester & Western railroad tracks, staying parallel to U.S. 11 before arriving at an unnamed motel in the Martinsburg area, according to court documents.

Berkeley County Sheriff's Deputy Michael St. Clair said in a criminal complaint that Stilwell confessed to the robberies after police found him on Wednesday and that the defendant indicated that he used a black pellet gun when he robbed Dollar Stretcher, according to court documents.

"Mr. Stilwell stated that he left his sister's house in Bunker Hill and was walking (past) the Dollar Stretcher when he decided to rob the establishment," St. Clair said in a complaint filed in magistrate court.

At the motel on Wednesday, police found the clothing they believe was worn in the robberies as well as the firearm used, according to a sheriff's office news release.

Witnesses identified the defendant as a person who possessed clothing and firearm similar to the robber after still images of surveillance footage from the H-Mart convenience store were released by police, according to court documents.