The young manager knelt in front of the safe, a thousand thoughts cluttering his head. His fingers were nearly frozen with fear as he fumbled with the combination. His heartbeat was pounding in his ears. A few thoughts came into focus; “please just get through this”, as the cold steel of the handgun pressed against his temple. He couldn’t remember if he kissed his wife goodbye when he left for work, or if he grabbed the sippy cup that was lying on its side, leaking milk on the baby seat in his car. The last number on the dial clicked into place releasing the handle of the safe. He pulled down on the handle and the door creaked open. In a sigh of relief, he leaned over and placed his back against the wall of the office, as the armed robber pushed passed him, greedily grabbing the cash. The robber’s attention, now focused on grabbing the money, was diverted and he laid the gun at his foot. The manager staring at the weapon quickly weighed his options. Should I grab the gun? Stay where I am? Get up and run?” The next chapter is yet to be written.

An employee was working at a chain donut shop by herself at 3 AM on a Saturday morning in Johnston, R.I.  She was standing behind the counter when she heard a noise and saw a man climbing the drive-thru window.  According to police, the man grabbed the employee by the arm while a second suspect climbed through the window holding a crowbar.  The pair robbers demanded the employee show where the safe was located. 

According to crime statistics robberies of food delivery drivers occur daily.  When we think about those kinds of robberies, thoughts generally turn to a driver being held up during a late night delivery by a subject or subjects with a gun, the usual weapon of choice. 

Last Friday, an employee of Long John Silver’s in Jackson, MI opened the back door to take out the trash after closing.  He was confronted by two men wearing bandanas, one with a gun.  A friend of the employee who was waiting in the parking lot for his friend to get off work tried to help.  The employee and his friend were both assaulted.  The suspects then entered the restaurant through the back door and confronted the manager at gunpoint.  They demanded cash and exited through the back door.  The employee and his friend were treated and released from the local hospital.  Police are investigating the incident. 

The order was placed from an unsavory part of town in Newport, RI.   The eyes of the driver delivering the pizza were sweeping from side to side as he drove down the dark street, his knuckles gripping the wheel a bit tighter than usual.  The roof of his car was adorned with the pizza company’s roof topper.  He knew it made his car stand out.  He was very aware that several deliveries to this particular area resulted in armed robberies, the latest in which the driver was assaulted.  He quickly glanced at the house address, then in the mirror, and again side to side.  The house was just ahead. 

Yasin Sara was robbed at his Y & S Supermarket this past week in Tampa, FL.  Sadly the robbery turned tragic when Sara confronted the gunman and was shot in the chest.   Luckily he is in critical but stable condition and expected to recover.  News accounts quoted a customer stating “he was the type of guy who stood his ground”, and “he was going to protect what was his.”  We love to root for the little guy, triumph over evil, and good guys over thugs. 

A friend of mine is a District Manager for a fast casual restaurant franchisee.  He was sharing the details of a late night robbery of one of his restaurants.  As the closing crew was exiting the restaurant, the shift manager told the crew to go on ahead; he had to reenter the restaurant to retrieve something from the office.  As the manager exited the restaurant alone and approached his vehicle, he was confronted by two masked and gloved gunmen that had been hiding inside.  They demanded reentry into the restaurant where they forced him to open the safe.  The two gunmen then fled the scene.

The article headline stated “Restaurant Robbery May Have Been an Inside Job”. A headline like that usually grabs my attention. It detailed a Subway’s front glass had been shattered and cash stolen from the safe. Current and former employees are suspected, because after all, a few of the employees were on the verge of being fired and someone used the combination to enter the safe. That’s a given, but what’s more relevant to me is the fact that this was NOT a robbery – it was a burglary; two very different crimes. I’ve heard many times, “My store was robbed last night!” My response was usually, “Wow! What happened? Was anyone hurt?” “ Uhhh, no someone broke in when no one was there.” So, it is common mistake to interchange the crimes.

The headline in the local newspaper caught my eye, “Pizza shop owner disarms robber”, accompanied by a photo of the grinning business owner with one of his delivery drivers. As loss prevention professional I understand there are differing perspectives on this. I will give my perspective, but want to first state the facts of the article.