A would-be robber screwed up twice in an attempted hold-up early Friday — first by brandishing a “gun” that turned out to be a stick, then by returning to the scene of the crime to attempt to buy a Reese’s peanut butter cup.
The incident occurred at the 7 – 11 at 400 Foxon Blvd.
Here’s what happened, according to police spokesman Officer David Hartman:
A Bridgeport man walked into the store and approached the 22-year-old third-shift cashier with his hand behind his shirt. “I want the money!” the man yelled, making it seem as if he were holding a gun. “Give me the money.”
The clerk “took a closer look at the crook,” Hartman reported. “He realized he was holding a small stick. He said he pushed the perp backward, and the two got into a shoving match. Eventually, the perp fled empty-handed.”
The clerk called Detective Matthew Abbate at 4:33 a.m. Abbate planned to check the surveillance camera footage during a follow-up visit. In the meantime, he told the clerk to call if he spotted the alleged crook again.
A mere 48 minutes later, the clerk called back. The man had come back, picking up the peanut butter cup and telling the clerk, “I’m not robbing you. I want to buy this.”
Abbate “raced back to the store ‚where he found several patrons helping the clerk detain the suspect.” Abbate arrested the suspect, a 46-year-old Bridgeport man. The man denied having been at the store earlier. Police charged him with criminal attempt to commit robbery in the first degree, first- degree threatening and second-degree breach of peace.
Veterans Outreach Worker Attacked
In other crime, according to Hartman:
A U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs outreach worker responded to a hot-line call from a despondent military vet at the New Haven Inn at 100 Pond Lily Ave. mid-day Wednesday. The despondent man “pulled out a knife,” demanded money, then “tried stabbing” the outreach worker when he was told there was no money. “A well-placed clipboard and heavy clothing prevented the knife from harming the victim.”
The despondent man, who stands six-foot-four and wore a Boston Celtics cap, fled the scene and remains at large.
The perp took off. He is a white man who stands approximately 6’04” tall. He wore a Boston Celtics cap, white T‑shirt, dirty denim jeans, tan work-boots and had a grey hooded sweatshirt tied around his waist. He remains at large.
