Horry County police searching for robbery suspect armed with box cutter

Horry County police are searching for one suspect after a convenience store clerk reported an armed robbery.

Officers responded to the Phoenix Mart at 1708 Highway 17 in Little River around 10:20 p.m. Nov. 3, according to Lt. Raul Denis with Horry County police. An employee called police after a male demanded money from the clerk “in a low tone of voice,” the police report said.

At first the employee “did not believe the man” and asked the suspect to repeat himself; the suspect repeated that he wanted all the money in the safe and the clerk told the suspect he could not get into the store’s safe, the report said.

The suspect then grabbed an unopened box cutter and told the employee to open the safe, the report said. When the clerk repeated he could not open the safe, the suspect put the box cutter down and left the store empty handed, police said.

When police arrived there were several customers in the store and the business was open, police said. When officers asked why the clerk didn’t close after the robbery attempt, he said “he did not think the suspect was really trying to rob the place, based upon how he acted,” the report said.

The suspect is described as a black male, 25 to 30 years old, 5 ft. 7 in. tall, weighing about 150 or 160 pounds and wearing a blue hooded sweatshirt and black basketball shorts. Anyone with information is asked to call police at 843-915-8477.

This story was originally published November 12, 2015 at 12:20 PM with the headline "Horry County police searching for robbery suspect armed with box cutter."