Robbers Escape After Holding 3 Workers Hostage

Three robbers armed with shotguns forced their way into a Perris drugstore early Tuesday and held three employees hostage before finally escaping a police cordon. The hostages were unharmed.

The first employee was taken captive as the Riverside County store was opening at 7 a.m., according to Perris police. The robbers, who were wearing ski masks, demanded to be taken to the store’s vault but the employee broke away and telephoned police, officers said.

As a Riverside County SWAT team surrounded the building and evacuated an adjoining shopping center, the robbers took two other employees hostage, police said. No shots were fired, and the two hostages were released about 1:20 p.m.

Police held positions around the store, convinced that one or more of the robbers were still in the attic. By the time officers searched the building at 4:30 p.m., the robbers had apparently fled.

Police did not know late Tuesday what, if anything, was taken.