Man, Woman Rob Plaistow, NH Cumberland Farms, Pistol-Whip Clerk
PLAISTOW, New Hampshire (CBS) -- Police are looking for a man and woman who robbed a Cumberland Farms store and pistol-whipped a clerk Sunday morning.
Plaistow Police said the pair entered the store on Plaistow Road around 6:10 a.m. armed with handguns and demanded money.
They struck one of the clerks, hitting her in the face with a gun. She can be seen falling to the ground in surveillance video of the incident.
Her injuries were non-life-threatening, according to police, and she refused medical treatment afterward--but family members later brought her to an area hospital.
"Our biggest concern was the level of violence that was involved in it," said Capt. Valquerio Eiro of the Plaistow Police Department. "They made the decision to strike that clerk, and for us that really brings it to a different level."
Police said the robbers were a white man and woman wearing dark clothing with hooded sweatshirts, dark bandanas over their faces, and sneakers. They were described as being average in height, thin, and young in age.
The clerk called 911--and turned on the gas station's fire suppression system, releasing Halon and possibly scaring the robbers off.
"We're not sure if that's what caused them to leave, or just the mere fact that they got what they were looking for," said Eiro. "I think they definitely did the right thing. There's really no amount of money that you can place onto your life, and at that point you kind of give them what they want and hopefully they go on their way."
The pair made off with a small amount of money, and ran out the back of the store in the direction of Danville Road.
"It wasn't a lot of money, a couple hundred dollars at most," Eiro said. "For a couple hundred dollars, to commit this kind of crime ... we obviously have concerns about the safety of the people, knowing those two are out there."
Police are asking anyone with information to contact them.