4/18/21 An Iowa City man faces charges that he tried to rob an acquaintance, at one point arming himself with a hammer. 25-year-old Jacob Lester of Benton Drive was booked into the Johnson County Jail just before 3:15am Sunday. Iowa City Police say Lester had visited a South Gilbert Street apartment just after 4:30pm on August 21 st, 2020, telling one of the residents that he owed people money, and the victim was going to cover it or Lester would cause him physical harm. Lester then allegedly tried to steal a supplement container full of cash. The two then began struggling for control of the container, with Lester at one point allegedly grabbing a hammer from the apartment and trying to bash the victim with it. The two then struggled for control of the hammer until a neighbor who heard the commotion intervened. Lester then fled the scene, allegedly taking the victim’s phone and throwing it outside the building.