Evening star., 1952-12-01
Hooded Bandits
Get $4,000 at
Hot Shoppe
Nervous Trio Drops
$500, Fires 2 Shots
In 14th St. Cafe

Three hooded bandits, nervous
as amateurs, robbed a downtown
Hot Shoppe Of $4,000 early to-
day, but kicked away 500 in
change and dropped another
$500 in their getaway.
Six employees were herded into
a basement Office of the restau-
rant at TOT Fourteenth street
NV, where one of the bandits,
even more jittery than the others,
fired two shots into the wall to
stress his demands that the safe
be opened.
The shots could be considered
opportune. After first refusing to
open the safe, Claude Blanken-
ship. assistant manager, said he
was about to rush the gunman
because II figured the gun was
so small it was a toy" Police
said 1t was ..22-caliber.
Mr.. Blankenship, %, of 22l JET
ferson street, Alexandria, and
Kitchen Manager Ray Ayers, %.
of 1913 Lynwood street, Alexan-
dria, were in the Office in the base
ment about AIS am.
Upstairs were four employees.
two Of whom had been unloading
an ice cream truck through the
push-bar, inside-locking rear door.
Young Loiterer Was Seen.
The three bandits obviously
knew the premises. One of them.
after walking into the back door,
told the employees upstairs come
on down" to the Office in the base
ment.
Manager Paul Sager and a
morning hostess, Mrs. Beatrice
Lowry, Immediately tied in tho
robbery with two apparent at
tempts to ease" the place. Mr..
Sager said he walked to the rear
door Friday night and surprised
a young man about 18 and blond,
standing at the door. He walked
away quickly when the manager
spoke to him.
Mrs. Lowry told of another
man, older. who sat at the coun-
ter for two hours Sunday night,
refusing service and nervously
making sketches on paper. When
he still declined service, Mrs.
Lowry said, he told her he was
looking for a Job and asking
where the Offices were.
When the bandits walked into
the door. they started forcing the
employees downstairs.
II don't work there" one re.
piled. II work, up here"
The gun helped enforce the de-
mand and the four employees, all
colored, were forced downstairs to
the Office.
AS the seven trooped in, the
gunman, with shaking knees, or
dered Mr.. Blankenship to open
the safe. He protested, saying he
didn't know the combination. It
was at this juncture that the BAN
dit holding the weapon wheeled,
fired twice and then turned quick
ly back to face the employees. One
bullet ricochetted, barely missing
Mr.. Blankenship's leg.
Bandit Fumbled Money Bags.
One of the bandits began un-
loading the open safe. He took
six zippered bags bearing the
Riggs National Bank marking. He
Ifumbled them several times,
dropped two, picked them up and
dropped them again.
A handful of packaged quarters
struck the floor, broke and SCAT
tered. The bandit kicked them
aside.
Then the three bandits fled up
the stairs and out the rear door.
dropping two more sacks which
they didn't stop to retrieve. Po-
lice. who reached the restaurant
within five minutes after the rob-
berry was reported by phone from
the Office, found the sacked money
in the alley beside the back door.
Descriptions were difficult be-
cause of the head-covering hoods.
but the victims told police one
man, whose hood was made of
some "flowered" cloth, appeared
to be from Is to 18 years old. All
three wore top coats.
The second man was about 20
to Is. five feet, nine inches tall
and weighing about $50 pounds.
His hood was q dirty white, the
victims told police. He also was
the gun wielder.
The third was the same gen.
eral description as the second.
The restaurant closes at mid.
night and normally Mr.. Ayers
stays until 6 am. Mr.. Blanken.
ship was there later than usual
doing paper work. The other
four employees report early to
ready the place for opening Of
business for the morning rush
hour.