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Robbery resembles ambush, police say

Wednesday, December 17, 2008
(Updated Thursday, December 18 - 5:27 am)

GREENSBORO — The stores at  Friendly Center were busy with shoppers Tuesday — everywhere except Old Navy.

The clothing store’s doors were closed and the windows dark. Someone had placed a single flower on the spot where Juan Estevan Salado fell after being shot by an armed robber at 10 a.m. Monday.

Salado, 25, a Charlotte area employee of Brink’s Armored Car, died Monday at Moses Cone Hospital.

A sign on the door said the store was closed Tuesday “out of respect to the victim and his family, to support our employees through this, and to ensure law enforcement has the opportunity to complete their investigation.”

Louise Callagy, a spokeswoman for Gap Inc., said the store would be open Friday, and the company would provide counseling to its employees and the customers present during the shooting.

Salado was at Old Navy for a scheduled pickup, police said. Witnesses said the robber, a man dressed in hospital scrubs and wearing a woman’s wig, shot

Salado as he walked to the front of the store with the bags of money.

Police Capt. Janice Rogers said the robbery seemed like an ambush.

Witnesses told police that a man had been waiting in the store before the Brink’s armored car arrived. After shooting Salado, the man ran out a service door at the back of the store and left in a waiting car.

On Tuesday, police continued to process evidence collected at the store.

“We’re getting a lot of calls, and we’re following all of our leads,” said Rogers, commander of the police department’s criminal investigation division. “We’re using all of our resources to solve this crime as quickly as possible.”

A woman identifying herself over the phone only as Salado’s sister said Tuesday that her brother was a loving father and a wonderful brother. “He was a blessing to have around,” she said.

Rogers said she didn’t know of another armored car robbery that had involved a shooting in Greensboro.

The Brink’s company does not comment on police investigations or on the company’s security procedures, company spokesman Edward Cunningham said.

Robberies in Greensboro have been increasing for the past five years, and until the economy improves, police expect the number to increase.

Sheree Maness, owner of Sheree’s Natural Cosmetics a few doors away from Old Navy, still felt chills a day after the shooting.

“I think we’re in for more of this. I just think people are desperate,” she said, adding, “I hope they catch him.”

Brad Rogers, Friendly Center’s general manager, said the center’s owner, CBL & Associates Properties, provides security for the center. In-house security is working with the police to give additional support, he said.

“Our concern is our customers and our tenants continue to feel comfortable at Friendly Center,” Brad Rogers said.

Police described the shooter as a black man with a dark complexion, between 5 feet 10 inches and 6 feet tall and wearing a shoulder-length, dark red wig.

He wore teal pants and a white shirt, similar to those worn by hospital employees, with a print design on the shirt and a long-sleeve white T-shirt underneath.

The shooter left the area in a black car that might have had a spoiler on the trunk.

The shooter stole several bags from the security guard, but police don’t know how much money, if any, he left with, Newkirk said.

Police ask anyone with information about this crime to call Crime Stoppers at 373-1000. Rewards can be paid to anonymous callers.

Contact Sonja Elmquist at 373-7090 or sonja.elmquist@news-record.com

Contact Dioni L. Wise at 373-7091 or dioni.wise@news-record.com

Accompanying Photos

Nelson Kepley

Photo Caption: Lauren Melton, 22, of Greensboro, pauses after placing a card and two red carnations on the ground outside Old Navy on Tuesday.

Additional Photos

the shooter

Police described the shooter as a black man with a dark complexion, between 5 feet 10 inches and 6 feet tall and wearing a shoulder-length, dark red wig. He wore teal pants and a white shirt, similar to those worn by hospital employees, with a print design on the shirt and a long-sleeve white T-shirt underneath. Police ask anyone with information to call Crime Stoppers at (336) 373-1000.

 

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