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Youngstown police investigate several recent robberies in city
Gunfire was exchanged during one robbery attempt.
YOUNGSTOWN — Police are investigating a series of robberies throughout the city over the last several days.
Thieves tried to rob the Petra Food Mart on South Avenue on Sunday but armed employees prevented the theft and chased the armed hoodlums from the South Side store.
According to police, three men entered the store just before 10 p.m. and immediately pulled hoods over their heads, put masks over their faces and pulled out handguns.
An employee sweeping the floor noticed the activities of the trio and pulled out the store-owned handgun tucked inside his clothing.
The employee aimed the gun at the three men while screaming for his co-workers to call police. The men, upon seeing the gun, fled the store and jumped into a four-door car parked outside the store.
The driver noticed employees trying to get the car’s license plate and fired a shot at the employee. The employee returned fire shooting at the car eight times.
It is not known whether anyone in the car was hit by gunfire, police said.
Police said a 13-year-old Hartzell Avenue boy was robbed of a gaming system Monday as he walked along the 1600 block of Hartzell on the West Side. The boy was not hurt in the attack.
The boy told police he was walking past two vacant homes at 1:35 p.m. when he noticed someone he did not know walking up closely behind him. The man following the boy then pushed the boy to the ground demanding all his possessions.
The thief took a PSP gaming system along with two movies before running off.
Two Youngstown State University students were robbed of their wallets, cash and a car outside a North Side home Friday.
According to police, the two 21-year-old male students went to a home in the area of Ohio and Lora avenues to retrieve a DVD from a friend. The pair told police there were several men standing outside the house when they arrived.
As the students tried to leave the home, one of the men pulled a gun and demanded all their possessions. The group of thieves then left the area in two separate cars — one of the vehicles was the 1997 Geo Prizm they had stolen from the students.
jgoodwin@vindy.com