Suspects' behavior aided arrests in heist

SCOTTSDALE - Two men who were acting nervously caught the attention of Scottsdale police, who later arrested them in connection with the robbery of a Scottsdale smoke shop.

Police arrested Brandon Daniels, 24, early Saturday after making an early morning traffic stop near 46th Street and Thomas Road.

Police suspect Daniels of brandishing a gun in The Coughing Canary Smoke Shop, 7162 E. Thomas Road,and demanding money.

A second suspect, Ernest Frederick, 24, was arrested Monday. Police believe he had been in the car that left the scene of the robbery.

Court documents offered these details:

Police noticed two men near 7100 E. Thomas Road walking back and forth near a Tacos Jaliscos restaurant abut 5:25 p.m. Saturday.

The men appeared nervous as they walked to the north end of the restaurant and got into a yellow Dodge Neon.

Police followed the car to an EZ Pawn shop. Detectives watched as one man entered the shop for about 45 seconds then returned to the car.

The pawn shop manager later told detectives that the man tried to pawn a handgun, but left when the dealer offered only $100.

About five minutes later, the detectives spotted the same car eastbound on Thomas Road. They lost contact with car for about two minutes, then spotted it parked north of a fast food restaurant near Scottsdale and Thomas roads.

As the car drove out of the lot about 6:30 p.m. the detectives received a call that The Coughing Canary Smoke Shop, had just been robbed.

They went to the shop and learned that the men who robbed it fit the description of the men they had been watching.

A shop worker described a man wearing a clear face mask with the eyes painted in the eye holes.

The man told the worker to put the money in a plastic grocery bag. The employee threw $100 in

$20 and $10 bills at the man.

Detectives had taken down the license number of the Neon and traced it to an apartment complex and staked it out. About 2:30 a.m., Daniels showed up in the car, and police pulled it over nearby after a traffic stop.

A two-toned black and green handgun was found in the center console. A clear face mask stuffed inside a baseball cap was found inside a plastic grocery bag in the car's trunk.

Daniels admitted he drove the car during the robbery and said his friend had a similar face mask and gun.

Court documents weren't immediately available on Frederick.

Both men are being charged with one count of armed robbery with a deadly weapon. Daniels is charged with one count of driving without a valid license.