Robbery suspect sought by police

FLORENCE — Police are trying to identify a man they say robbed a convenience store clerk at gunpoint Friday morning.

Investigators said a masked man armed with what appeared to be a semi-automatic pistol robbed the Quick Mart at Royal Avenue and Hermitage Drive.

"The clerk was going out to the (garbage bin) with boxes when she met him outside the building," Florence police Sgt. Cliff Billingsley said. "He forced her back inside the store." He said the robber forced the clerk to go back around the counter.

"He followed her around the counter, and then ordered her to open the cash register and give him the money," Billingsley said.

"After he had the money, he made her sit down on the floor and he left the building.

"I'm sure the clerk was shaken up, but she was not physically injured." He said witnesses said the man was walking east on Hermitage Drive when he left the store.

"We believe he may have had a car somewhere close by," Billingsley said.

The robber was wearing dark-colored clothes, including a dark-colored ski mask. Billingsley said he likely was wearing gray tennis shoes.

The man is described as being a white male about 5 foot 7 inches tall.

Anyone with information is asked to call 256-768-2728 or Crime Stoppers at 256-386-8685.

Tom Smith

ARRESTS

Florence police

• Douglas Blake Deaton, 29, 155 Sunny Acres, Muscle Shoals; second-degree theft of property.

• Lauderdale County sheriff

• Janie Marie Davis Atwell, 55, 4350 U.S. 43, Killen; second-degree manufacturing a controlled substance.

• Wesley Lee Gibson, 27, 132 Woodland Hills Drive, Florence; grand jury indictment for second-degree escape.

• Lauderdale drug task force

• Milton David Price, 68, Huntsville; trafficking in illegal drugs, carrying a concealed weapon, certain persons forbidden to carry a gun and two counts of unlawful possession of a controlled substance.

REPORTS

Muscle Shoals police

Thefts

• A vacuum cleaner was taken from a residence in the 900 block of Buena Vista Avenue.

• Tools were taken from a business in the 500 block of Avalon Avenue.

• Two concrete lions were taken from a residence in the 600 block Dearborn Avenue.

• Eight pairs of leggings, two tops, jeans and pants were taken from a business in the 500 block of West Avalon Avenue.

• A Bluetooth player, GPS and computer cord were taken from a business in the 2500 block of Avalon Avenue.

• A camp stove and grill were taken from a business in the 500 block of Avalon Avenue.

• Two dresses and a top were taken from a business in the 900 block of Avalon Avenue.

• A Ford truck was taken from a business in the 500 block of Alabama 20. A fence at the business was damaged.

• A 2007 white Chevrolet Impala was taken from the 2600 block of Woodward Avenue.

• A necklace, earrings, lip balm and gloss, nose rings, earrings and teeth whitening strips were taken from a business in the 500 block of West Avalon Avenue.

• A pair of black, purple and teal Nike shoes were taken form a residence in the 1200 block of Midland Avenue.

Breaking and entering

• A GPS unit and camera were taken from a white 2007 Dodge Durango parked in the 800 block of Hickory Street.

• Sixty music CDs were taken form a white 2005 Nissan Altima parked in the 2000 block of Edwards Avenue.

Criminal mischief

• A residence in the 1200 block of Midland Avenue was damaged.

• A 1999 Ford F-250 truck was damaged while parked in the 2000 block of Edwards Avenue.

Sheffield police

Thefts

• A 2003 Buick Park Avenue and electronics were taken from a residence in the 100 block of Stone Court Apartments.

Criminal mischief

• A residence at Long Lowe Apartments was damaged.

Burglaries

• A business on Jackson Highway was broken into; nothing was reported taken but two bottles of liquor were broken.

Breaking and entering

• A GPS unit was taken from a 2007 red Nissan Altima parked in the 500 block of Wilson Dam Avenue.

• A cellphone charger and $4 were taken from a 2013 red Ford Ranger truck parked in the 800 block of Austin Avenue.

Lauderdale County sheriff

Breaking and entering

• A .380-caliber pistol, black holster and bullets were taken from a truck parked in the 200 block of Wayne Drive, Killen.

Criminal mischief

• The ignition switch on a car parked in the 8000 block of U.S. 72, Killen, was damaged.

• A fence at a residence on Lauderdale 52, Anderson, was damaged.

Thefts

• A weed trimmer was taken from a residence in the 9000 block of Alabama 17, Florence.

• A dinning room table, six chairs, and a washer and dryer were taken from a residence in the 800 block of Lauderdale 90, Waterloo.

• A tire from a boat trailer was taken while the trailer was parked at the Shoals Creek boat ramp, Florence.

Burglaries

• A residence in the 400 block of Lauderdale 459, Killen, was broken into but nothing was reported taken.

• Two televisions and an Xbox computer system were taken from a residence in the 1200 block of Alabama 17, Florence.

Tuscumbia police

Breaking and entering

• A GPS unit and money were taken from a 2007 Toyota parked in the 300 block of North Commons.

Florence police

Thefts

• A purse and 12 credit cards were taken from a business in the 300 block of Cox Creek Parkway.