BLUE ACRES – For the third time in less than a year, the Esso gas station in Blue Acres has been robbed.
Shortly after 3 a.m. on Sunday the Pictou County District RCMP responded to a hold-up alarm from the business.
According to a police release and court information, a lone adult male entered the business with a knife and demanded cash. He fled the area with an undisclosed amount of money.
When police arrived, the employee who was working at the time was able to provide a detailed description of the man. A suspect, who has no fixed address, was arrested within 10 minutes of the alarm by the RCMP without incident.
Daniel Sizli, the 19-year-old accused in the robbery, appeared in Pictou Provincial Court Monday. He will return for a bail hearing on Thursday.
RCMP Const. Bryce Haight credited the quick response of police and the detailed description from the employee for the almost instant arrest.
“We were not too far away and the description was detailed,” he said. “He was very observant.”
Evelyn Hatton, manager at the gas station, said she could not comment on the incident, but said the RCMP handled it well and their employee did everything right.
“The young fellow kept his head and pushed the panic button (to notify police),” she said.
The Esso was also robbed in July by three teens who sprayed an employee with bear spray before fleeing. They were all arrested and charged following an investigation by RCMP.
At the time, an assistant manager said there had also been another robbery a couple months prior to that.
To A - That, unfortunately, won't solve the problem. There is a Needs in Truro that gets hit multiple times a year, over and over, and usually at night when you have to be buzzed in. What might help is stopping letting people in the store at night. Be buzzed in after 7 until 9 or 10 and then after that, have a window that they can come up to and make requests. The employee can then go collect the items and pass them out the window. No letting people in and they will be safe inside. Sad that we need extremes like that!