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APD still searching for robber

• Albany police continue their search for a man they say has robbed nine Albany businesses since June 13.

Joshua Brown

ALBANY — The Albany Police Department is asking for the public’s help after a Saturday armed robbery of the Cracker Barrel, which they say may have been committed by the same man who has robbed eight other businesses since early June.

Descriptions of the man vary, but police believe he is between 5-feet-10-inches and 6-feet-4-inches with a muscular to stocky build. Detective Charlie Roberts said police do not have an age estimate on him but said he is a black man.

The man sometimes enters the business crouched over, which accounts for the height disparity, he said. Since June 13, nine businesses have been robbed, many of them at gunpoint, he said.

APD spokeswoman Phyllis Banks said police believe the same man is responsible for the robberies because the mode of operation is similar.

“The fact is that this person has used some sort of disguise to keep us from knowing who it is,” Roberts said.

The man has robbed businesses from every section of Albany, he said, so businesses across the city should be extremely observant of every customer who enters their stores.

“We would like to say to all the businesses that their employees should be studious and mindful of their surroundings. Be mindful of their customers as they come and go,” he said.

Anyone with information about the possible identity of the man can call CrimeStoppers at (229) 436-TIPS and be eligible for a reward or leave the tip anonymously.

Businesses on East Broad Avenue, Gillionville Road, Cordele Avenue, East and West Oglethorpe Boulevard, North Westover Boulevard and Dawson Road have been robbed by the man, Banks said.

The latest robbery came Saturday when a “chubby” black man wearing a covering over the lower portion of his face entered the Cracker Barrel on North Westover Boulevard entered the restaurant about 6 a.m. and pointed a gun in the direction of the employees, according to an incident report.

The report states the man never pointed the gun directly at the employees.

When asked what he wanted, the man only said “money” before being told by an employee they would have to go to the office to get it, according to the report.

The man brought a plastic Harvey’s bag into the restaurant and had the employees put the money in it, though it began to tear because the “money was too heavy,” according to the report.

After he asked them for a new bag, the man appeared nervous and dropped the money on the ground, one of the employees told police.

He then left the store with about $3,200 in cash, according to the report.

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