Maynard Police talk with the business owners while awaiting the arrival of a K9 unit, after the Corner Store at the intersection of Walnut and Parker streets in Maynard was robbed at gunpoint, Sept. 15, 2019. [Wicked Local Staff Photo/John Walker] ▲

When Mike Patel received a call from his father-in-law telling him the Corner Store had been robbed at gunpoint he thought it was a joke.

"All the customers are very nice. The neighbors are fantastic," said Patel, who has owned the store for about two years. "This has never happened before."

In fact, he said, when his father-in-law, who was counting change at the time, heard the man tell him to "give me the money," he thought one of his customers was joking, until he saw the gun.

The robber made off with about $900, Patel said.

Based on his size -- Patel described the man as about 5-feet tall and skinny – he believes the robber was a kid. He was wearing a black hoodie, which obscured his face, and gloves. A bullet was later found on the floor, Patel added.

The robbery happened just before closing at about 8:54 p.m. He believes the robber was watching the store and waited until his father-in-law was cashing out the drawer before making his move.

The store, which is at 49 Walnut St., has security cameras and motion sensors that are activated at night, but the alarm under the counter was not working at the time of the robbery, Patel said.

Police investigated, and brought a dog with them, he said.

It could have been worse. Earlier in the day Patel had removed some of the cash from the drawer. More importantly, no one was hurt.

"That's a good thing," he said. "The money doesn't matter."

Maynard Police Lt. Michael Noble said police would be releasing a photo of the suspect on Sept. 17.

"We have not made any arrests at this time, but are actively investigating," he said.

This is a developing story. More information will be added as it becomes available.

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