Dollar General hit twice in a month
By DON FLETCHER
News Staff Writer
Atmore police continued this week their investigation into last week’s robbery of Dollar General on East Church Street, the second time in just over a month that the general merchandise store has been targeted for such a crime.
Police Chief Chuck Brooks confirmed that a lone bandit entered the store the night of August 6, just minutes before it was to close, and demanded money.
“It’s still under investigation,” said Brooks, who noted that police were notified of the heist at 10:51 p.m. “Right at closing time a single male entered the store, demanded money and forced the cashier to hand over the money from the register. He took an undisclosed amount of money and fled on foot.”
Alabama Department of Corrections tracking dogs were called in but were able to follow the suspect’s scent for only a short distance.
“We got the prison dogs in here, and they performed a track,” said Brooks. “They followed him for a while, then lost the scent. We feel like he probably got into a vehicle at the point where they lost the scent.”
The same store was robbed in the same manner on July 2 when two Atmore men, their faces visible to the store’s video surveillance camera the entire time, unsuccessfully attempted to pull off a heist, also around closing time.
The pair — 21-year-old Theron Riley of a Jack Springs Road address and 22-year-old Anthony Myles of a Ewing Drive address — came up empty-handed and were caught soon after the attempted robbery.
According to Escambia County Detention Center records, Riley and Myles were each charged with one count of armed robbery and each remained in jail this week. Riley was given a $10,000 bond that was later revoked; Myles is being held under a $100,000 bond.
Things weren’t quite as simple in the most recent robbery. Surveillance video again captured the action, but the bandit’s face and arms were covered.
He reportedly rushed into the store, brandishing a handgun and demanding money, just as employees were preparing to close.
“This time, the suspect wore dark clothing and had his face covered with a mask,” Brooks said. “We’re still working on trying to identify him, but we haven’t had any luck yet. We don’t know if it’s somebody completely different, or if it’s one of the ones we caught last time.”
Anyone with information that could lead to the arrest of a suspect in the most recent incident is urged to call 368-9141 and ask for Investigations. All calls are confidential, if the caller wishes.