Police arrested a 17-year-old man Thursday in connection to recent armed robberies at a Bloomington McDonald's and Aver's Gourmet Pizza.
The man is charged with two counts of armed robbery and was taken to a secure juvenile detention center, said Bloomington Police Department Lt. John Kovach. An additional robbery Wednesday at the Regions Bank Whitehall Branch remains under investigation.
A confidential informant gave BPD information about the 17-year-old and detectives were able to track his location. They waited for him to get into his vehicle, stopped it and took him into custody, Kovach said.
Police responded to the armed robbery at Aver's Gourmet Pizza on 317 E. Winslow Road at about 11:22 p.m. Wednesday.
Witnesses at the store said a man walked in and told employees this was a robbery. He pulled out a knife from his right front pocket and reached over the counter to grab money out of the register drawer.
Early morning Wednesday, police also responded to the robbery at McDonald’s on South Walnut Street, where a man allegedly walked up to the register and handed the cashier a note with the words, “This is an armed robbery. Give me all the money.”
Although he displayed no weapons, the cashier handed him money from the register, Kovach said. The man then left the McDonald’s on foot, exiting through the north doors.
Samantha Schmidt
