Robbery spree sparks public appeal
He’s in-and-out of the stores in under two minutes. He’s wearing a hoodie. His face may be scarred. And, so far, he’s unrecognizable.
Vernon RCMP are appealing to the public for help in trying to solve a string of six robberies over the past two weeks, robberies, police say, likely committed by the same individual.
Police have released still images and video from two of the robberies at Petro-Can and at Subway, both on 27th Street, in hopes of identifying the suspect.
“Right now, we do not have any idea who it is,” said Vernon RCMP spokesman Gord Molendyk. “We have looked at the faces and it’s not an individual that our officers say, ‘Oh, it looks like it’s Joe Blow.’ We’re asking for the public’s help. We’re releasing the images in the hope somebody might recognize the individual and give us a call.”
Five of the robberies have been reported, including one at Bakers Dozen on Nov. 12. Police became aware late Wednesday afternoon that Bakers Dozen was hit again by the suspect two days later on Nov. 14, making six robberies since the spree started at Simply Delicious, on 31st Avenue downtown, Nov. 10.
In all of the thefts, there are similarities that lead police to believe that they are looking for the same person.
“The general description of this person is that he is between five-foot-seven and six-feet tall, and he is described as being between 30-to-40 years of age,” said Molendyk.
“In several of the robberies, the clerks described him as having either scars or a pock-marked face.”
At the last robbery, Tuesday afternoon at Grillers Meats and Eats on 30th Avenue, the suspect was wearing a mask and a short coat. In all of the other robberies, he was seen wearing either a gray or dark hoodie.
In all cases, the suspect indicated he had a weapon, but none has ever been produced.
Police were only able to get video surveillance tapes from Petro-Can and Subway. In both of those instances, the robber was in and out of the store in less than two minutes.
It’s unknown if he has a getaway vehicle or perhaps an accomplice. Police dog services has only been able to pick up a track for a short distance from a robbery scene before losing it.
What is known is that RCMP want to catch this criminal, and catch him quickly.
“We have officers adjusting shifts, and a whole crew of members are out beating the pavement,’ said Molendyk. “We want to catch this individual before it escalates and somebody gets hurt, and we’re afraid that might happen.”
Police also believe that with six robberies over the course of eight days, somebody out there knows something about them.
“We believe an individual having committed this many robberies, somebody knows something about it,” said Molendyk.
“Whether it’s a friend or an accomplice. We don’t believe an individual will do this many robberies and somebody not know anything.”
Anybody with any information on the robberies, or the person responsible, is asked to call the Vernon RCMP at 250-545-7171, or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS (8477).
Video from the RCMP media briefing, as well as surveillance tape footage of the suspect, can be found at www.vernonmorningstar.com.
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