SPRINGFIELD

— Police responded to a Tuesday morning panic alarm at the Citgo gas station at 707 Dickinson St., where a man

robbed the Forest Park store at gunpoint

.

No one was injured in the 9:47 a.m. incident, but cash was taken from the register, according to police, who continue to investigate.

The suspect pointed a small, dark-colored semiautomatic gun at an employee of the store – also known as Food Bag – and demanded money, police said.

The business is located at the corner of Dickinson and Appleton streets, and the suspect was last seen running down Appleton, police said.

Authorities described him as a Hispanic man with medium-length hair and tattoos on his legs, forearm and possibly his neck.

Investigators are asking anyone with information to call the Springfield Police Detective Bureau at (413) 787-6355. Text-message tips can be sent to CRIMES (274637) and should begin with word SOLVE, followed by information about the crime.

About 3½ hours after the Citgo incident, police were called to the scene of another armed robbery in the Forest Park section of the city. This time, however, the victim was a food cart proprietor, who was robbed at gunpoint while working near the corner of White Street and Belmont Avenue.

The suspect, a 5-foot-9 white man with dirty-blonde hair, produced a black, semiautomatic handgun and demanded money. The robber reportedly apologized to the victim before fleeing with an undisclosed amount of cash, police said.

MAP showing approximate location of Forest Park armed robbery: