OKC Police Release Video Of Armed Robbery

Oklahoma City police released surveillance video of an armed robbery Tuesday. The crime happened on June 24 at Discount Tobacco in the 1800 block of West Main Street. In the video you can see and hear the suspect that police need help identifying.

What started as a regular customer visit quickly turned violent. According to the police report, the suspect grabbed two drinks from a cooler and walked to the side of the register, startling the store clerk.

He then yelled at the employee to “Hurry up. Put all the money in the bag.”

The armed suspect demanded all the money from the register. Police said the employee reacted the best he could and complied with the suspect's demands.

“Obviously this is a very frightening situation for somebody who is in the position of the store clerk,” said Msgt. Gary Knight, Oklahoma City Police Department. “They’re having a gun not only pointed at them but they have somebody shouting instructions at the same time.”            

The store clerk was not harmed but visibly shaken. The clerk did not want to talk about his experience on camera, but did tell News 9 Crimetracker Jennifer Pierce that he feared for his life. He thought the armed robber was going to shoot him when he ordered him on the floor. In the video you can hear the suspect shouting, “Get on the floor, get on the floor.”

What the suspect did not realize is that the store's surveillance system captured the entire exchange. Police said the man took off on foot. Officers now need the public's help identifying him, either by his face or by his voice.

“Hopefully somebody out there will know who this man is,” said Msgt. Knight. “Excellent video of his face. You get a good look at it, good enough that anyone who know him should recognize him.”

The police report states the suspect left two drinks behind. Police were able to lift fingerprints off one of the bottles, giving them even more clues to this crime.

If you have information about the suspect call Crime Stoppers at (405) 297-7300.