A black-clad robber wearing a full-face ski mask and armed with a machete demanded cash from a clerk before running from a Walgreens pharmacy in Orange County, according to police.
Officers responded to a report of a robbery at the Walgreens pharmacy just before 8 p.m. Wednesday night in the 1200 block of East Yorba Linda Boulevard in Placentia.
The man, who was seen on surveillance video wearing what police described as a full-face ski mask and carrying what appeared to be a three-foot-long machete, pointed the weapon at an employee and took off with about $200, according to the Placentia Police Department.
No one was injured, but the pharmacy employee believed the weapon to be real, police said.
Initial reports indicated that the man was carrying a Samurai sword and wearing what resembled a "ninja" mask.
"If it was real, certainly some kind of martial arts sword could inflict a severe injury on the victim," Lt. Eric Point said.
The man was seen wearing a leather jacket, shirt, jeans and gloves, all of which were black. He removed the mask as he ran from the store, police said.
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A witness who saw the man remove the mask described him as 5 feet 10 inches tall and weighing about 180 pounds with curly hair, according to police.
A storekeeper in the same shopping complex said that this incident reinforces his decision to close up shop before dark.
"It's just a different animal when the sun goes down," Robert Prayer said. "You've just got to be prepared."
