OHIO COMPUTER STOLEN Man claiming to be marshal visits robbed gas station Morning Journal: Serving Lorain, Erie, Huron and western Cuyahoga counties:

Man claiming to be marshal visits robbed gas station

Published: Friday, June 12, 2009

By KRISTEN VASAS
kvasas@MorningJournal.com

LORAIN — A man claiming to be a U.S. marshal told a Tower Boulevard gas station owner Wednesday night he would be watching the building, according to a Lorain police report. The Shell Gas Station was robbed of more than $30,000 in cash Sunday night.

The man entered the station and purchased a pack of gum, identified himself as a marshal, then accused the owner of the robbery and of not paying taxes, according to the report.

The owner confronted the man in the gas station's parking lot and asked to see his identification, Sgt. Mark Carpentiere said. The fake marshal fled the scene in a 2007 dark green Chrysler Pacifica and has not been found, Carpentiere said.

The fake marshal was described as a white male, between 40 to 50 years old with a stocky build, according to the report. The gas station was robbed at gunpoint around 10 p.m. Sunday night by two men who ordered the owner to shut off the lights, Carpentiere said.

One of the men disconnected the station's computer surveillance system while the other forced the owner to hand over the keys to the store safe, lottery register and store cash register, according to a police report.

Along with the money, the men took two cartons of Newport cigarettes and the surveillance desktop computer before leaving in a green Ford Explorer, according to the report.

The white male suspects wore dark-hooded sweatshirts pulled over their heads, and one had a red bandanna over the bottom of his face, according to the report.

Although the owner said the stolen computer surveillance system also downloads to his home computer, he has not yet provided a copy to officers, Carpentiere said. Both incidents are still under investigation, Carpentiere said.