Robbery At Sandy Hook Laundromat
Robbery At Sandy Hook Laundromat
By Andrew Gorosko
Police are investigating a case of first-degree robbery on Wednesday night near closing time at PJâs Laundromat at 110 Church Hill Road in Sandy Hook Center, in which a man told a clerk that he had a gun, demanded money, and then made off with a metal bucket filled with quarters and paper money.
Police received a call at 8:43 pm informing them of the incident in which there were no injuries. Police have no suspect in the case.
Police described the assailant as a white man between 20 and 30 years old who has a scruffy light brown beard. The man was wearing blue jeans and a blue hooded sweatshirt with the hood up, police said.
Based on interviews conducted in the area following the incident, police learned that the man left the laundromat on foot, went across a nearby footbridge over the Pootatuck River, and then entered an older sedan that was parked in a small parking lot on Washington Avenue, said police Lieutenant George Sinko. The car then headed southward on Washington Avenue, toward Newtown High School.
After entering the laundromat at about 8:40 pm, the man told a 16-year-old male clerk there that he had a gun, but he did not show a weapon, Lt Sinko said. âNo weapon was shown. It was a threat,â he added.
The robber then took the bucket holding an unspecified amount of coins and paper money and left the building, Lt Sinko said. The clerk was the only other person in the laundromat when the incident occurred. âHe was getting ready to close up [the business],â the lieutenant said.
The laundromat has surveillance cameras. âWe have obtained some video evidence which the detective bureau is analyzing,â he said.
After learning of the incident, all available police, including the police departmentâs German shepherd, Baro, responded to the crime scene to investigate, Lt Sinko said. âThey canvassed the areaâ in seeking to learn who committed the crime, he said.
Patrol Officer Scott Smith is investigating the incident. Police ask anyone who has information about the incident to contact them at 426-5841, or at their tip line at 270-8888.