Police Surround Market, but Armed Robbers Escape

Los Angeles police surrounded a Van Nuys supermarket Tuesday morning where two armed men were believed to be trapped after a failed robbery attempt--only to discover six hours later that the men had somehow escaped.

About 40 police officers, two canine units, several fire engines and a Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) team were sent to Jons market in the 6600 block of Van Nuys Boulevard after a store employee spotted the robbers and called police, said Los Angeles Police Officer Lorie Taylor.

Three Jons employees were opening the store about 6 a.m. Tuesday when one, a bookkeeper, was confronted in the market’s top floor by two men wearing ski masks. According to the bookkeeper, one of the men carried a shotgun, the other a pistol, Taylor said.

“They wanted to get me to open the safe,” said the bookkeeper, who refused to give her name. “Their gun fired, and I ran downstairs.”

The bookkeeper escaped without injury, told the other two employees about the robbers, and all three escaped through the store’s front door, locking it behind them. They called police around 6:10 a.m., and officers from the nearby Van Nuys Division arrived shortly afterward, Taylor said.

Police, who sealed off Van Nuys Boulevard between Vanowen and Kittridge streets, thought the men were inside because every known exit was locked. A SWAT team arrived about 8 a.m. Entering through the roof and a cargo door, the team combed the building for about four hours. They found no trace of the men and no clues about how they entered or escaped, Taylor said.