Easton's White Rose Pantry Employees Shaken After Repeat Robberies
EASTON (CBS) -- After repeat robberies, White Rose Pantry is taking precautions against another.
Nearing closing time Sunday night all was quiet inside the White Rose Pantry in Easton until a cloaked man approached the store.
Surveillance cameras show a man wearing a dark, hooded sweatshirt making his way toward the register and, as the cashier walks to greet him, the man pulls up a surgical mask, flashes a gun and demands cash. It was the second times White Rose had been hit.
Store employee Sherral Smith said the robbery left her fearful.
"I was freaking out because I didn't know if he'd actually pull the gun on us and do something if we didn't do what he said," Smith said.
Smith hid from the robber and called the cops, watching him sprint away with his pockets full of cash. She's back at work Monday.
"I'm here but I'm still a little bit frightened by it," she said.
Smith isn't alone in that fear. The store will now close an hour earlier than normal, shifting closing time from 11 p.m. to 10 according to store manager Fedi Marawi.
"Of course a lot of customers get used to us being here when they need us late at night, but for the safety of our customers and employees, it's a choice we have to make," Marawi said.
Protecting employees, Marawi said, is a top priority.
"When you come to our store, it's like our house. Our employees are sisters and brothers to us," Marawi said. "When you point a gun it's like you threaten us in our own home, so eventually we will be armed in this place, so you better think twice about coming again."
