Two have occurred in the city limits, Detective Corey Dixon said, the latest one occurring Thursday night around 10.

The problem has become so widespread, Dixon said, that the State Bureau of Investigation has initiated a task force to delve into the problem.

“It's happening all over Eastern North Carolina,” Dixon said. “They have happened as far west as Oxford and as far south as Jacksonville.”

There have been at least 14 similar robberies reported throughout the region, he said.

Whether they are organized robberies is something the task force is trying to uncover, Dixon said. The method of operation is the same, the robbers catching the owners as they are coming home. “They bum rush them when they are going in the door.”

Captain O.L. Morgan of the Roanoke Rapids Police Department said the latest robbery in the city occurred when the owners of China Lin on Premier Boulevard left their restaurant shortly before 10 p.m..

At approximately 10 p.m.a white sport utility vehicle pulled up as they were going to their home on East Fourteenth Street. When the two victims exited their vehicle three people described as black males in black clothing and bandannas covering their entire faces except for the eyes approached them.

They took an undisclosed amount of money. One of the victims was struck in the head with what was described as a black handgun. The injury required stitches.

Dixon said a couple of months ago, Roanoke Rapids police investigated the first of such robberies when the owners of Great Wall were accosted and tied at their residence on Jackson Street. “It was pretty much the same thing,” he said.

Roanoke Rapids police are working through cultural barriers and will work with translators to make the owners understand they have to be more careful when carrying money from the day's business. “We're pretty much going to give them guidelines that they need to watch their backs, look for cars following them and be aware of their surroundings.”

Morgan said anyone with information on the two robberies in Roanoke Rapids are encouraged to call Dixon at 252-326-1233 or Crimestoppers at 252-583-4444.