A shocking incident in Melrose Park was captured on video, leaving the community on edge.
Last week, a local restaurant owner fell victim to an armed robbery that took place in broad daylight.
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The audacity of the crime was startling.
The perpetrator, unfazed by the presence of security cameras, brazenly left his face uncovered. In an unusual twist, he even used a credit card to pay for his meal before threatening the owner with a firearm.
The owner, choosing to remain partly anonymous, prefers to be known only by his first name.
This unsettling event occurred shortly after 5:30 p.m. last Tuesday at Arepa Express, situated on Lake Street in Melrose Park.
Surveillance video shows the moment a man in a baseball cap pulled a gun, cocked it and pointed it at the restaurant’s owner, Julian, who just an hour earlier had served the thief as he sat down for lunch at the Venezuelan restaurant.
“I had no idea what he was going to do. He ordered an empanada and a soda,” Julian said in Spanish.
The gunman, he says, paid his bill with a credit card before leaving and returning to the restaurant to use the bathroom a short time later. He then came back a third time, once the restaurant was nearly empty.
“I wasn’t at the register; he called me over. When he pulled the gun, I thought he was going to shoot me. He asked me for all my gold jewelry,” Julian said in Spanish.
Julian said the items were valued at close to $10,000 and included a necklace, a bracelet and two rings. His law school graduation ring from Venezuela was among the items.
He said the gunman did not ask for anything else. And while Julian doesn’t remember seeing the suspect before, he believes he was targeted.
“He’s Venezuelan, too. And that hurts. Most of us are here to work, not to hurt anybody,” said Julian, who has owned Arepa Express for two years now.
It’s been hard work, and he hopes the suspect is caught soon.
“I hope anyone who recognizes him will call police. So he can be arrested and not hurt anyone else,” Julian said.
Julian said Melrose Park Police know who they are looking for.
Police did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
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