KEARNY –
On Feb 10, two bandits, one armed with a handgun, entered Krauszer’s Deli at Kearny and Bennett Aves., tied up the clerk and escaped with approximately $1,000 in cash and several cartons of cigarettes, police reported.
Since that robbery, the KPD has linked it to at least three other hold-ups: at a Newark gas station on Feb. 1; the Shoppers Express convenience store on Washington Ave. in Belleville on Feb. 3; and another Krauszer’s, in Bloomfield, on Feb. 13.
Officer Chris Medina responded to the report of the Kearny crime, which occurred at 7:30 p.m. Police Chief John Dowie said the culprits took the clerk, who was alone, to the back of the store, where they secured him with zip ties and removed money from his wallet. They then robbed the cash register and also took lottery money and the cigarettes before fleeing on foot up Bennett Ave.
The KPD investigating officers, Sgt. Charles Smith and Det. Ray Lopes, comparing reports of other recent holdups, noted similarities between the Kearny robbery and the ones in Belleville, Bloomfield and Newark.
The bandits’ MO, the weapon displayed and the use of zip ties were the same, as was the description of the suspects: two black males wearing black clothing — including hoodies, ski masks and gloves — and both carrying backpacks.
The investigation is continuing.
–Karen Zautyk
