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ACPD Investigating Another Note-Passing Robbery Attempt

Perhaps the pen is not mightier than the sword, after all.

A man who tried to rob a local store by passing a note to a clerk yesterday left empty-handed, according to Arlington County police.

The incident happened shortly after 1 p.m. on the 2100 block of 15th Street N., in Courthouse. That’s the same block as the CVS Pharmacy adjacent to the Metro station entrance.

Police say a man passed a threatening note to a store clerk, demanding cash, but “the employee declined.” The man then snatched the note back and ran off, according to a crime report.

ACPD is investigating whether the crime may be connected to three similar note-passing robberies and robbery attempts in September and October.

“Based on similarities with the other reported incidents, detectives from the Homicide/Robbery Unit are investigating this as a possible additional case in the series,” police spokeswoman Ashley Savage tells ARLnow.

More from the crime report:

ATTEMPTED ROBBERY, 2020-11110082, 2100 block of 15th Street N. At approximately 1:19 p.m. on November 11, police were dispatched to the report of an attempted robbery. Upon arrival, it was determined that at approximately 1:09 p.m., the suspect approached an employee at the counter and passed them a note demanding cash and threatening them. The employee declined to provide cash and the suspect took the note and fled prior to police arrival. The suspect is described as a middle aged Black male, approximately 5’10”-6’0″, with a slim build, wearing a yellow jacket with the hood up, a dark colored baseball cap, a dark colored shirt, dark blue jeans, tan shoes and a tan backpack. The investigation is ongoing.