Christine Clarridge from The Seattle Times filed this report today that a father and son who were locked inside an unlit Queen Anne restaurant while it was being robbed are credited with taking down the bad guy.
According to Seattle police, the two men were inside Kidd Valley restaurant in the 500 block of Queen Anne Avenue North shortly before 9:30 p.m. Sunday when the lights suddenly went out.
The manager, the employees and most of the customers fled the restaurant before the manager locked the door, police said.
But a 60-year-old man, his 31-year-old son and another customer remained inside, police said.
When the suspected robber, 56, emerged from the back of the restaurant wearing a mask on his face and ordering those inside to get down, the father and son moved quickly.
"Fearing that a robbery was taking place, the father and son tripped the suspect and fought to hold [him] until police arrived," police said in a statement.
Police said the robbery suspect, who turned out to be a former employee, had entered the building, walked through the restaurant to the rear where the kitchen and office are and turned off all the lights.
The robber got into the unlocked safe, grabbed the cash and was headed back out when he was tripped, police said.
According to police, the money was found in the suspect's pocket.
The father and son sustained minor injuries and were treated on the scene by Seattle Fire Department medics, police said. The suspect also was injured and was treated at Harborview Medical Center before being booked into the King County Jail, police said.
Seattle Police Department spokesman Mark Jamieson said he did not know why the manager locked the store with customers still inside.
He also said that police "do not normally advocate" that witnesses get involved as the father and son did. "However, in this case, it ended well."[[In-content Ad]]
