LYNNWOOD, Wash. -- Just days ago a Lynnwood store clerk was playing the victim after a robbery at the store where he worked. Now police say he was in on it the whole time.
Store managers say it had been nearly a decade since the last robbery at the 76 Station on Alderwood Mall Parkway. Everyone was surprised when two men with a gun came into the store in November, but they were even more shocked when it happened three weeks later.
Store manager Brad Green says cameras in the store were rolling the whole time.
"Based on the video surveillance, it looked like the same people," he explained.
Even more troubling the second time, they took it up a notch. The suspects appeared to attack the cashier; knocking him to the ground and kicking him.
Green says their first concern was for the man's health, but after they realized he was okay, something about the situation didn't add up.
"It was bizarre to see it happen and then see it happen three weeks later."
The store owners worried about the safety of their workers and customers, but wondered if there was more to the story.
Friday their concerns were confirmed when Lynnwood police announced the cashier was in jail on perjury and theft charges.
"These were just a couple people who tried to take advantage of the system and now they're paying the price."
The cashier hadn't worked at the store very long and managers say after his arrest, they found out a little more about his background.
"He was drama student at one of the local high schools, so kind of makes sense where he learned a little acting," Green said.
It wasn't enough to fool police. And now store owners hope it will restore customer confidence, which had been a bit rattled by the two incidents.
"It was an inside job, there truly aren't people who are out running with guns in their hands in this neighborhood."
