The owner of Local Roots Marijuana in Snohomish County is offering a $2,500 reward for information that leads to the arrest of a masked man who robbed the store at gunpoint Saturday night and threatened to kill employees.
Surveillance video shared with KIRO 7 shows the unidentified suspect walking into the store on Winesap Road around 10:18 p.m. and immediately pull a gun. An employee was forced into a corner of the store with his hands up.
“Definitely forceful, for sure,” said Aaron Keith, one of the employees who was robbed. “He just wanted the cash.”
The robbery lasted less than a minute with the masked man able to get away with more than $1,000 from a cash register, according to the store’s owner Jannine Bruns, who said the man also unsuccessfully demanded the contents of the store’s safe.
“Upset, violated,” said Bruns. “I’ve been hit at this location a number of times so, just upset.”
Bruns said this store has been targeted by criminals seven times since opening its doors in 2015, including smash-and-grab thefts and one previous robbery.
The store said it has changed protocols and added security measures to help protect employees including personal panic buttons. It now limits the amount of cash in registers following Saturday’s robbery.
Bruns said it appears the suspect may have cased the store for about an hour before going inside and may have been spooked off earlier by the flashing lights of a deputy driving by on an unrelated call.
No customers were inside the store during Saturday’s robbery and none of the employees were hurt.
The Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office said deputies responded to the store with a K-9 but were unable to find the suspect.
Anyone with information that can identify the armed suspect can call the sheriff’s office anonymous tip line (425) 388-3845.
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