Photo credit: Providence Police

A homeless drug addict who's also a registered sex offender is accused by Providence Police of committing several felonious armed robberies to support his drug habit.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Homeless registered sex offender charged in armed robberies in Providence <a href="https://t.co/6hqL7uyVGV">https://t.co/6hqL7uyVGV</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/AmandaMilkovits">@AmandaMilkovits</a> <a href="https://t.co/Nqez6psISf">pic.twitter.com/Nqez6psISf</a></p>— Providence Journal (@projo) <a href="https://twitter.com/projo/status/895427773149401089">August 9, 2017</a></blockquote>

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Police say that 35 year old Willie Rathbone is believed to have committed nearly a dozen armed robberies in recent months, in and around Providence and surrounding cities to help him achieve his next high.

The most recent crime was a robbery at a Walgreens Pharmacy on 1140 North Main St. early Wednesday morning. During that incident, witnesses say that a man with a gun in his waistband demanded money and cigarettes from the clerk.

Major David Lapatin said that Sergeant William Dwyer’s special team of investigators determined that Rathbone was behind the crime, which prompted a manhunt to locate the suspect involving a dozen officers.

Detectives claim that they later received a tip that Rathbone was in the house on 656 Elmwood Avenue, which is when SWAT officers surrounded the home and found Rathbone along with several other addicts inside the residence using various narcotics, along with a BB gun believed to have been used in the crime which looked very similar to a 9mm.

Rathbone is now charged with the armed robbery of the Walgreens Pharmacy, although Major Lapatin said other charges are anticipated once detectives can finish investigating the nearby community's robberies.

—<i>[email protected]</i>

<i>On Twitter: @IWillRedPillYou</i>