Police: Knife-Wielding Suspect Sought In Queens Robbery String
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- Police are looking into a possible link between a string of robberies in Queens and more than a dozen similar holdups of convenience stores on Long Island.
According to police, the suspect entered a Dunkin' Donuts on 45th Avenue in Flushing at around 11:30 p.m. Monday and flashed a knife before demanding an employee open the register. The suspect left with $600 in cash, CBS2's Janelle Burrell reported.
"He took all the money and left in one minute. He was very quick," manager M.D. Kabir said.
The store is now locking its doors after 9 p.m. and having customers use their walk-up window instead.
Investigators believe the same man is responsible for two similar robberies -- one on May 11 at a Carvel on Metropolitan Avenue in Forest Hills and another robbery of a Dunkin' Donuts in Howard Beach on May 25.
Dunkin' Donuts employee Suresh Patel told Burrell the suspect pressed a knife up to him before taking around $776 from the register Wednesday.
"He took the register and go, leave," Patel said.
Several other Dunkin' Donuts locations in Queens were hit in similar attacks in April. It is unclear whether those robberies are related.
Police are looking into whether the suspect in the latest incidents is linked to more than 16 other robberies that have occurred in Nassau and Suffolk counties on Long Island.
Earlier this month, a Dunkin' Donuts on Powells Lane in Elmont was targeted, with the suspect flashing a large kitchen knife at a clerk before leaving the store with cash.
Other incidents include an April robbery of a Dunkin' Donuts in Massapequa Park and the robbery of a 7-Eleven store in Old Bethpage in March, police said.
In one incident in New Hyde Park, the suspect walked by a "wanted" poster of himself before entering a Subway restaurant location and robbing the store, police told WCBS 880's Sophia Hall.
According to police, the suspect typically strikes when there are no customers on the premises and will typically wait nearby the targeted location before robbing the store.
Noone has been injured in any of the robberies.
The suspect is described as a black man, about 5 feet 9 inches tall with a medium build. He was last seen wearing a black hooded sweatshirt, blue jeans and black boots. Anyone with information is urged to contact police.
