REDMOND, Wash. — In what has become a disturbing trend in western Washington, multiple 7-Eleven locations in western Washington fell victim to armed robberies in the early hours of Tuesday morning.
Redmond police confirmed that a location at 5040 148th Avenue NE was targeted by two armed suspects just after 1:30 a.m. Tuesday. The suspects threatened an employee and a customer before taking cash from the store and fleeing on foot.
No injuries were reported, and the suspects have yet to be identified or found.
There have been reports of other armed robberies at 7-Eleven locations in King and Snohomish Counties, but police have not released any additional information on those incidents. The president of the 7-Eleven Franchisee Owners' Association of the Northwest, Chander Shekher, tells KING 5 that there were additional robberies in Bellevue (2353 140th Avenue NE, Kirkland (13335 100th Avenue NE) and Bothell overnight.
Owners of 7-Elevens have been increasingly frustrated as their stores seem to be consistent targets of these overnight robberies. In a one-week span last month, 12 different overnight robberies alone in King County were confirmed by KING 5.
"It's been so rapidly rising that it has been kind of getting out of control," Shekher told KING 5 earlier this month.
Shekher owns four convenience stores in western Washington, including one in Woodinville that was among those attacked last week.
In that case, two King County Sheriff's Deputies just so happened to be driving by and caught the four suspects in the act of loading cash and cigarettes into a stolen car.
"If they're able to nab four to five such incidents, obviously these incidents will be curtailed to a great degree," Shekher said.
Other store owners have proposed stationing officers near convenience store parking lots. The King County Sheriff's Office says it is attempting to increase business checks, but with so many 24-hour store locations and limited staffing, it is not an easy task.
Shekher said not only is it harder to retain employees with so many armed robberies, but attracting customers to the stores overnight is also becoming increasingly difficult.
"People are scared to come to convenience store at night because they are not sure if criminal activity like robbery etc. are taking place there or not," he told KING 5.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates.