FARGO -- "Man, who robs a thrift store?"
That question was posed on Tuesday by a would-be customer at the store run by Fargo's St. Vincent de Paul Society, where a robbery attempt was thwarted by a volunteer who smacked the suspect in the head with an antique teapot.
Police are wondering the same thing, after the suspect fled on foot after the 1 p.m. attempted robbery at the charity's thrift store at 1425 First Ave. S.
"It's kind of unusual," Sgt. Jeff Skuza said of a thrift-store robbery.
George Lacher, the nonprofit's treasurer, said the teapot was the first thing he could put his hands on when he heard yelling from the front of the store.
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Lacher said he saw the suspect, who appeared to be in his 20s, struggling to take the cash register from the clerk. Lacher snuck behind him, trying not to attract his attention.
"If he'd have seen me, I wouldn't have gone at him," Lacher said. "He was bigger than me."
The 66-year-old treasurer said he hit the thief three times in the head, the second blow knocking him off his feet and the third blow hitting him in the face on his way down. As he fell, the cash register was also pulled to the ground.
"The sad part is, if he came to the till and said he needed help, we could have given it to him," Lacher said.
The store closed for the day Tuesday as investigators processed the scene.
The suspect left the store empty-handed with his face bloodied and was last seen on foot heading down 14th Street South from First Avenue South, Skuza said.
Witnesses said the man wore a blue bandana covering his face, cut-off denim shorts, a black baseball cap and a gray shirt.
Skuza said police don't recommend getting physical with criminals who are demanding money.
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"We suggest you give them whatever they need," Skuza said.
Lacher said he suspects the man might have been under the impression the store was a good target because of a program the charity runs that can provide up to $100 to help the poor cover shortfalls on rent and utility bills. The emergency bill payments are given out at the store on Tuesday and Thursday afternoons, he said.
He said the program has rapidly expanded this year, with the $26,000 given out since January tripling the total amount provided in 2009. Last month, the local chapter of the Christian charity gave out $5,000 in bill payments, Lacher said.
"I assume the word is out on the street," he said.
Skuza shrugged off the theory, noting that the bill-payment program doesn't deal in cash. Lacher said the payments are made directly to the entities owed.
Dave Roepke is a reporter at The Forum of Fargo-Moorhead, which is owned by Forum Communications Co.
