Pinellas County deputies search for attempted robber

CLEARWATER (FOX 13) - An armed suspect grabbed a CVS employee’s arm in an attempted robbery, but luckily, no one was injured, deputies say.

Detectives are searching for the suspect. On Monday, just after 10:30 a.m., they say he entered the CVS located at 3765 Ulmerton Road in Clearwater. 

The suspect asked the employee for Marlboro cigarettes, but the employee said they didn’t have any. In surveillance video, released by the Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office, the suspect grabs the employee’s arm and pulls out a pocket knife that was up to four inches long. 

The employee called for a manager and the suspect fled from the store, detectives say, in a white minivan, possibly a Dodge Caravan, with tinted windows and black tape covering the license plate. The suspect left westbound on Roosevelt Boulevard.

The suspect is described as a white male, about 40 years of age, with a gray scruff mustache, wearing a blue sport jacket, black pants, a green USF Bulls baseball hat and red-lensed sunglasses. 

About one hour after this incident, Pinellas Park police reported an armed robbery at a Subway at 7009 66th Street North. Pinellas County investigators say the suspect matched the description in the CVS attempted robbery, but it's not known whether the same individual committed both crimes.

Anyone with information is asked to contact the agency at (727) 582-6140 or anonymously to Crime Stoppers at 1-800-873-8477 or www.crimestoppersofpinellas.org..