Armed robbery at Castlegar gas station
By Kyra Hoggan
Sunday night saw an armed robbery at the Mowhawk gas station on Columbia Avenue. Police were called at around 9:20 p.m.
“A lone male suspect entered the gas station wearing a scarf covering his face,” said Castlegar RCMP Sgt. Laurel Mathew. “The employee asked the male to remove the face covering, but instead, the suspect handed the employee a note. “At that point, the employee realized what was happening and fled out of the gas station, where he asked a passerby to call 9-1-1.” She said the story continued to unfold outside, where a witness saw what was going on and gave chase after the suspect, whereupon the suspect threatened him and showed him a handgun. At that point, she said, the witness backed off. Despite roadblocks and intensive searching, police were unable to apprehend the suspect, who escaped with an undisclosed amount of purloined cash. He is believed to have fled in his vehicle, although that has not yet been confirmed. Police are asking the public’s help in identifying the man, described as about 5’8” or 5’9”, wearing a grey puffy jacket with a black scarf around his face, dark sunglasses, a black baseball cap, wearing dark pants and running shoes and carrying a large black duffel bag. Anyone with any information regarding this incident is asked to call the RCMP detachment at 250-365-7721.
