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Gunman Escapes Wrentham Outlets Robbery With $15,000

WRENTHAM (CBS) – Police are looking for a brazen armed thief who stole $15,000 from a shop in the Wrentham Village Premium Outlets late Tuesday night.

WBZ NewsRadio 1030's Karen Twomey reports

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Police say the man went into the Guess Factory Store around closing time and appeared to be shopping.

When all of the remaining customers left, he pulled out a gun and rounded up the employees.

"Four employees were forced at gunpoint into a fitting room, duct taped across their mouth and their legs were bound," Police Lt. Det. Bill McGrath told WBZ NewsRadio 1030. "A fourth employee, the manager, went to the cash drawers and was forced to empty them."

When you listen to the 911 emergency call, you can hear the terror in the caller's voice.

"We work at the Wrentham Outlets, the Guess store.  We were just held up by gunpoint. He got all the money," an employee screamed to the dispatcher.

WBZ-TV's Jim Armstrong reports

"Overall, it's not what I would consider a typical armed robbery. It's a suspect who took the time and effort and risk of subduing four employees all at once," McGrath said. "That's a lot to take on."

A source told WBZ's Karen Twomey the outlets are often targeted by criminals who know there is little surveillance and that the stores often don't prosecute.

McGrath described the gunman as a "black male, average height, average build, wearing a baseball cap, black puffy jacket, dark jeans."

Aside  from a description, police have a phone and they hope in can provide some forensic evidence about the suspect.

The phone belonged to one of the workers.  The suspect stole it, but he ditched it on the grass as he ran to what investigators assume was a getaway car.

WBZ-TV's Jim Armstrong contributed to this report.

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