2 taken to hospitals after N.C. grocery store robbery

GATES, N.C.

Two people were taken to hospitals after armed men robbed a grocery store Tuesday night.

Deputies were called to Family Foods on N.C. 37 at about 7:45 p.m., Gates County Sheriff Edward Webb said.

No one inside the store was shot, but one person who was hit in the back of the head with a gun was taken to Sentara Norfolk General Hospital, and another person with a minor head injury was taken to another hospital, Webb said. They were treated and released.

The robbers got inside the store through a back door that was open while employees cut up cardboard boxes for disposal, Webb said. When they got inside the store, they fired a warning shot and ordered everyone to get on the floor.

Everyone complied, Webb said. One of the gunmen headed to the store office and took money from the safe. The other man forced a cashier to empty money from the cash registers.

The men were wearing black clothing and had their faces covered, Webb said. They were armed with a handgun and a long gun. Webb said officials have not determined whether the long gun was a rifle or shotgun.

The two men fled with the money and some cigarettes, Webb said. Witnesses have given conflicting reports about how the men left the area after the robbery. Some have said the men fled on foot, while others reported a small red car speeding away. Others have said they thought a pickup was involved in the robbery.

Investigators have video from the store's surveillance cameras, Webb said.

Anyone with information about the robbery can call (252) 357-0210.

Cindy Clayton, (757) 446-2377, cindy.clayton@pilotonline.com