Two arrested after UW student robbed at gunpoint

Two men were arrested Sunday night after a Seattle police officer witnessed them robbing a University of Washington student at gunpoint.

Half an hour before the student was robbed, a 60-year-old man called 911 at 9:15 p.m. to report he'd been robbed by two men with a gun near the intersection of North 65th Street and Woodlawn Avenue North, said police spokeswoman Renee Witt.

Then, at 9:51 p.m., an officer saw two men hold up a 21-year-old woman at gunpoint near Northeast 43rd Street and Eighth Avenue Northeast, Witt said. The officer called for backup and one suspect was quickly found hiding in some bushes. The second suspect was arrested a block away, she said.

Both victims positively identified the suspects, who are 20 and 21, Witt said. Both men were booked into the King County Jail on investigation of robbery.

According to Seattle Police Department crime statistics, the number of robberies reported between January and July rose by 25 percent compared to the same period in 2008.

Though the numbers are up, "the good thing is we're actually catching these suspects," Witt said.