Violent robberies at west Edmonton convenience stores have police searching for suspects

Edmonton police are looking for help identifying two suspects from a couple of violent west end convenience store robberies earlier this year.

Both happened on Tuesday, Jan. 25, a few blocks apart.

The first robbery happened just before 1 a.m. at a Circle K store near 182 Street and 89 Avenue in the Belmead neighbourhood.

The violent encounter was captured on security video released by police on Wednesday. (See in the video player above)

Police said the suspects reportedly entered the convenience store and demanded cash from the till.

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The first suspect threatened the clerk with a large knife.

At one point, police said the suspect held the knife to the clerk’s throat and later hit the clerk in the head. The clerk suffered minor injuries, police said.

1:30 Violent robberies at west Edmonton convenience stores have police searching for suspects

The second suspect went behind the till and grabbed cigarettes, and the two men then fled with the cash and cigarettes.

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The first suspect is described as a 25- to 30-year-old man. Police said he was about five feet 10 inches tall and weighed around 165 pounds. He was wearing a black jacket, black jeans and tan gloves, and had black fabric wrapped around his face.

The second suspect is described as a 20- to 25-year-old man who was least six feet tall with a thin build. He was wearing a black baseball cap, black jacket with large white lettering and was wearing a white, patterned face mask.

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Shortly after the robbery in Belmead, police said the first suspect entered another Circle K convenience store near 172 Street and 95 Avenue, in the nearby Terra Losa area.

The suspect reportedly held a knife to the clerk and demanded money.

The suspect then reportedly emptied the register into a bag, grabbed several packs of cigarettes and fled.

Circle K stores, many of which are former Mac’s Convenience Stores, are part of Quebec-based parent company Alimentation Couche-Tard Inc.

The company sent a statement to Global News on Thursday.

“First and foremost, the safety of our team members and customers is always our top priority. We are grateful for the quick response of the Edmonton Police following this incident and we continue to collaborate with them in the next steps. Our focus right now is tending to the needs of our team members that have been involved and providing them with the best support available,” the statement from Couche-Tard said, deferring all further comment to EPS.

Anyone with information is asked to contact police at 780-423-4567 or #377 from a cellphone. Anonymous tips can also be submitted to Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477 or online.