Police search for armed convenience store robber

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (WSVN) -- Authorities are searching for a man who robbed a neighborhood convenience store.

The Fort Lauderdale Police Department responded to an armed robbery that occurred at around 9:40 p.m., last Friday, at Marina Discount Beverage, located at 2705 SW 15th Ave.

According to police, the robber looked like a ninja, disguised head-to-toe in black. Dennis Robinson saw the man headed toward the store in the suspicious garb. "He went down the sidewalk and walked toward the door, and I told my wife, 'This doesn't look good,'" he said.

Surveillance video footage showed the robber walking in the front door and then pointing a black handgun at the store clerk, demanding the clerk open the cash register and then ordering him to lay down on the floor. "He opened the door, all in black, " said the store clerk, Dilip Modik, "and I saw only his eyes."

Modik said he feared for his life and complied with the suspect's demands. "The guy had a black cloth and everything," Modik said. "He had a gun. He came over here, opened the register and took the money."

The suspect grabbed the cash from the register and fled from the area. Witnesses said the man ran out of the store to a waiting car. "He was in there maybe 20 seconds," said Robinson, "and then, boom, he comes running out and shot across the field like a rabbit."

The suspect is described as a white male, standing 5 feet 6 inches to 5 feet 7 inches inches tall and weighing about 140 pounds. He wore black shorts, a black long sleeve T-shirt, black sneakers and a black T-shirt draped across his face during the robbery. "He's not scared to do this," said Fort Lauderdale Police spokesperson Deanna Garcia. "He's not scared to walk into this well-lit business and point a firearm at another human being."

"I think it's terrible, I think it's terrible. I think he should be caught and locked up," said one woman who frequents the store. "I think it's terrible. It's a neighborhood store. The people are very, very nice, and I think it's just wrong."

If you have any information on this robbery, call Broward County Crime Stoppers at 954-493-TIPS. Remember, you can always remain anonymous, and you may be eligible for a reward.

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