Convenience Store Robbery on Avalon
Sheriff’s Office Investigating Burglary of Convenience Store ***
The Santa Rosa County Sheriff’s Office is investigating a burglary that occurred at the RaceWay Convenience Store located at 2783 AVALON BLVD MILTON FL. THe burgalry occured between the close of business (2300 hours on 11/26/2011) and the business opening on 11/27/11 at 0600. Deputies were called on the morning of 11/27/11, in reference to a burglary complaint. When deputies arrived, they met with Store Clerk Daisy Cole, who said when she came in to work she discovered the store had been broken in to. Cole said she first entered the store at around 0540 hrs and began to complete her morning routine with getting the store open when she noticed a ball of pink insulation near the bathroom. When she walked over, she noticed a big hole in the outer wall of the men’s restroom. Cole grabbed her purse and ran outside where she notified the sheriff’s office and her employer.
When Deputies entered the store, they noticed a large hole in the men’s restroom outer wall. The hole was located on the southwest corner of the building and faced west. The rest of the building was searched and the main safe for the business had obviously been cut open. The safe had been cut where the locking bolt/latch is located by what appeared to be a metal grinder.
Deputies verified with Cole that the alarm was active during the burglary and was turned off when she came in to work. No alarms were received for this location after the business was closed. There are also (2) motion detectors located in the store that never triggered an alarm.
Deputies also observed the chain link fence to the holding pond directly behind the business had been cut in (3) different sections. The hole penetrating the side of the business was made by using a cement parking lot tire stop. Tire and foot prints were discovered on the dirt road (North 30th Avenue) from the southwest area of Raceway and behind the used car lot business just South of Raceway.
A RaceWay representative from Atlanta, Georgia told deputies that a copy of the surveillance video would be available at a later date; however deputies were able to watch the video inside the store. The video showed a person cutting open the safe. The person was wearing dark colored clothes and a white belt and they appeared to have their face covered. While Deputies were conducting their investigation, they learned that the Raceway on Pine Forrest Road in Pensacola was also burglarized the same night with the same M.O. in that case. Deputies also learned that a Raceway in Mossy Head was burglarized in the same manner on 11/22/11, where a cement tire stop was also used to break a hole in the back wall. Deputies were also informed that (3) separate stores in the Mobile, Alabama area had been burglarized to in the same type of manner within the past week. . The safe contained an undisclosed 7ammount currency. This case is currently under investigation. Anyone with information concerning this burglary is asked to call Santa Rosa County Crime Stoppers at 437-STOP. Information provided to Crime Stoppers that leads to the arrest of a suspect may be eligible for a cash reward of up to $1000.00.
