Police say Saturday crime spree may be related to string of 7-Eleven robberies
As the search continues for a killer wanted in connection to Monday's 7-Eleven robberies, the Los Angeles Police Department says they're investigating a similar crime spree that happened just 50 miles away on Saturday in the North Hills area.
RELATED: Armed robberies at 6 different 7-Eleven stores leave 2 dead, several wounded
Security video captured an armed suspect step aside to let another customer leave Yummy Donuts, where he then went inside and terrorized the owners for about 90 seconds.
"He jumped over and then he pulled the gun, lift his shirt and point to me and then told me to take all the money in the cash register for him," said Chanmary Kong.
Kong said she looked at the suspect in his eyes when he walked in and could tell something was wrong, but before he made his move, he made a request.
"After he came in and then he ordered a donut, he said, 'Can I have two chocolate twists?'" she said.
Once the man jumped the counter, Kong's husband came running out from the back. The masked gunman then shouted demands at him.
"Come on, hurry up. I have no time, and then where's your safe, where's your safe? And then I don't want to hurt your wife. Just give me the money you have," Chantha Heng, Kong's husband, told CBSLA.
The armed robbery suspect grabbed some cash and took off running at around 5:30 a.m. Saturday morning.
The crime spree started an hour and a half earlier at a 7-Eleven on Woodley Avenue and Parthenia Street. The victim there told CBSLA that the suspect paid for a drink, then pulled his gun and took off with over $1,000.
LAPD said he then went to Yum Yum Donuts on Woodley Avenue and Nordhoff Street, at around 4:30 a.m. Twenty minutes later, he hit another 7-Eleven, this time on Woodley Avenue and Devonshire Street.
Police released security images, saying that the same man hit all four locations while armed with a handgun. They said detectives are checking to see if it could be the same man who robbed and shot five people, killing two of them at six different 7-Eleven stores Monday morning.
RELATED: Witness to fatal shooting at Santa Ana 7-Eleven speaks out
"We're not discounting anything at this point. We are looking at everything in the Southern California region," Deputy Chief Alan Hamilton said.
Detectives did not see their suspect use a car to get away, so they think he might be local, but a connection to those other crimes has been ruled out.
As for King, she said the robbery scared her, but her shop will stay open.
"We need to risk it, to open the business because we need to pay the rent," she said.
LAPD said they are checking with six other police departments investigating Monday's 7-Eleven robberies, and they hope someone who sees the suspect photos can help them identify the man.
RELATED: Multiple 7-Eleven locations closed overnight in wake of armed robberies, shootings on 7/11 Day
That suspect, struck six separate locations beginning in Ontario before moving to Upland, Riverside, Santa Ana, Brea and La Habra. Along the way he fatally shot two people and wounded three others.
"Sounds like a desperate person," said one 7-Eleven customer who spoke with CBS reporters on Wednesday. "Sounds like he's deranged."
Authorities have described him as a Black man standing 5-feet, 10-inches tall, weighing around 160 pounds.
While the investigation continues, 7-Eleven's corporate offices have urged Los Angeles-centric locations to close their doors overnight, during the riskiest hours to operate.
