Police: Man buys items at Family Dollar before robbing store

Columbus police said they are trying to identify the man who purchased items at the Family Dollar at 4328 Buena Vista Road before robbing the store of an undetermined amount of cash.

The thief didn’t brandish any weapons, authorities said. No one was wounded.

Officers said they were called to the business shortly after the incident.

The store clerk said a 5-foot-11-inch tall black man entered the store at 7:57 p.m. and walked around suspiciously before purchasing three items with cash. The man appeared to be 20 to 30 years old and weighing 160 pounds. He wore black clothing, black sunglasses and a black hat with a red brim and white writing.

The clerk was removing money from the cash register when the suspect lunged over the counter and took an unspecified amount of money. She slammed the register door shut on the suspect’s hands, but he was able to flee the store on foot.

“(She) said the suspect constantly kept his right hand on the right side of his neck as if he was concealing a tattoo,” police said in the report. “(She) stated that the suspect did not brandish any weapons or make any statements at the time of the robbery.”

Police said they couldn’t immediately access the surveillance footage but collected two samples of DNA from the scene that were logged in as property and evidence. The robbery remains under investigation.

This story was originally published April 15, 2016 at 8:49 AM with the headline "Police: Man buys items at Family Dollar before robbing store."