ASTORIA — Two neighborhood bodegas were robbed in separate incidents within days of each other, according to the NYPD.
In both incidents the suspects hopped over the counter and stole money from the cash register, police said.
The first robbery took place shortly after 11 p.m. on Saturday at a bodega on 21st Street and 27th Road in Astoria, where the suspect jumped the counter and tried unsuccessfully to open the cash register himself, police said.
The man — who covered his face with a T-shirt, according to police and video of the incident — then pretended to have a gun inside a brown bag and ordered a worker to open the register. He stole the drawer of cash inside and fled, police said.
The suspect is described as 6 feet tall and 185 pounds, according to the NYPD.
Just two days later, another man pulled off a similar robbery at a bodega in Woodside.
Police say a suspect wearing a black face mask entered the shop on Northern Boulevard and 54th Street at 8:40 p.m. on Monday holding what looked like a gun with a bag wrapped around it.
He jumped over the counter and demanded money from an employee, police said.
Video of the incident shows the suspect taking cash out of a register drawer. He then fled the shop and headed west on 54th Street, according to police.
The suspect in the second incident is described as around 25 years old and standing 5-foot-8, police said.
Anyone with information about either robbery is asked to call Crime stoppers at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477).
