Customer pulls gun on Kennewick store clerk before emptying till

A robber made off with a handful of cash Saturday evening after pointing a gun at a Kennewick store clerk while buying an item.

Kennewick police are looking for the man, who’s believed to be between 5-foot-5 and 5-foot-7.

Officers were dispatched to the Rocket Mart at 7:32 p.m. after a store clerk reported the armed robbery.

The 5304 W. Canal Drive convenience store and Conoco gas station is at the corner of Edison Street.

The clerk told police that the suspect approached the checkout counter with an item from the store, then produced a gun and demanded money out of the register.

Officer Cory McGee said in the police report that the clerk complied with the suspect’s demands and was not harmed.

The robber, wearing dark clothing with a balaclava-style face mask, ran out of the store with an undisclosed amount of money. Police did not say if the suspect then left in a car, or continued his escape on foot.

A police dog tried to track the robber’s scent but could not locate him, the report said.

Anyone with information on the robbery or the suspect is asked to call Kennewick police through the non-emergency dispatch number at 509-628-0333.