ANOTHER ARMED ROBBERY IN CAPE

Another armed robbery at a Cape Girardeau gasoline station Thursday night makes 20 robberies since early July, police said.

"This number of robberies is not typical for Cape Girardeau," Cpl. Kevin Orr said.

Only six have been solved so far, he said.

The latest robbery occurred at 2:26 a.m. at Huck's at 353 S. Kingshighway, police said. A man wearing a white T-shirt, cutoff jeans, surgical gloves and a silver bandanna over his face entered the store and jumped over the counter.

The robber threatened the clerk with what was described as a five-inch silver knife with a wooden handle. He demanded to know where the money was, Orr said.

After grabbing a gray bank bag from the store's counter, the robber ordered the clerk to fill it. The clerk took money from the cash register, then the robber bent down and took money out of the store's safe.

The clerk was told to go to a back room and lie down. As the robber accompanied him, he pushed the clerk down and told him if he called police, he would kill him.

The holdup at Huck's was the tenth against a business since July 10, and the twentieth overall, Orr said.

Of the six that have been solved, five ended in arrests and one investigation was ended when the victim of a street robbery refused to cooperate with police.

In eight of the robberies, no weapon was shown. The others involved handguns in four cases, five knife holdups, a brick, a bottle and one shotgun, Orr said.

Five people reported injuries from the robberies.

The clerk at Huck's did not report any injuries, police said.

With the SEMO District Fair starting on Sunday, police are asking all who attend to take necessary precautions against thefts or robberies. Last year during the fair, three robberies occurred within walking distance of Arena Park, Orr said.

Businesses should also check their surveillance equipment to make sure it is operating properly, he said.