Spencer Remoquillo

Reporter

LANCASTER – A store clerk said she feared for her life when she fired a shot at a steak knife-wielding masked man attempting to rob the store before he ran out Monday night, she told Lancaster police.

"I fired one shot at him and I missed him," the City Center Drive Thru clerk said, sounding scared and breathless during the 911 call.

The clerk described the masked man as about 5 feet 7 inches tall with a medium build, wearing black sweatpants and a gray hooded sweatshirt with a mask that also seemed to be made out of sweatshirt material with two eye holes cut out. She said it looked like the man was wearing sunglasses under the mask.

The Lancaster Police Department's detective bureau is still investigating the armed robbery that was reported just before 8:30 p.m. Monday at the drive thru, located at 641 N. Columbus St. The clerk said she saw the man run out of the store to the left toward an alley. Detectives retrieved video surveillance from the store Monday.

The masked man came into the building holding a knife and pointed it at the clerk, who backed up into a counter where the gun was located, according to police reports. The 44-year-old clerk told police she grabbed the gun and pointed it at the man and he leaned toward her again with the knife before running out of the store.

"He just came up to the register and he said 'Give me all your money,' and I thought it was a joke," she said in the 911 call. "And then he waved the knife at me and I pulled out the gun and he started running."

The clerk said she fired the gun at the man, fearing he would come back for her, according to the police report.

Lancaster police searched the area and found a man in an alley within 150 yards of the store. Upon further investigation, police discovered the man had two outstanding bench warrants and arrested him. However, it's unclear whether this man had any involvement in the robbery and there was nothing in the report connecting the two incidents other than his proximity to the store when police searched the area.

The incident was the second armed robbery reported in Lancaster within about 24 hours of each other. The first armed robbery was reported at Fat Cat Pizza, 1415 Sheridan Drive, just after 7 p.m. Sunday. According to the report, a man came into the pizzeria with a knife demanding money. The man left with more than $200 in cash, according to the report.

Detective Bureau Sgt. Matt Chambers said it's too early to tell whether the incidents were related.

"We don't have enough at this point to say if they are or if they aren't," he said.

sroush@lancastereaglegazette.com

740-681-4342

Twitter: @SpencerRoushLEG