LAWRENCE — Two men with a gun held up the Tedeschi's Food Shops store at 390 S. Union St., and escaped with $130 cash and an undetermined amount of cigarettes, police said.
The two men entered the store about 2:25 a.m. Thursday, after first attempting to rob the occupants of a black car parked outside, police said.
They were able to break the passenger side window before the car drove off, police said.
Once inside the store the men, with T-shirts over their faces, jumped over the counter and held a gun to the head of the store clerk, ordering him to open both cash drawers.
They helped themselves to the cash and cigarettes, and ordered the clerk to turn around while they fled the store on foot.
The clerk was struck several times on the top of his head with the gun, but suffered only a minor cut. He refused medical attention, police said.
The clerk told police the man with the gun was wearing a black T-shirt, dark colored jeans, black sneakers, and had a white T-shirt over his face.
The second man was wearing a white T-shirt over his face, a red shirt and dark jeans with black sneakers.
A short time later Officer John Tulley spotted two men running in the area of the high school and one of them lost a sneaker which was recovered. The sneaker appears to match the sneakers worn by the man with the gun, police said.
Police dogs from the state police and sheriff's department were called to the scene and tracked the two men, but lost the scent on North Parish Road, police said.
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The following were taken from area police logs for Wednesday:
Methuen
Car break: 25 Arthur St., 3:45 a.m.
Theft: 176 Haverhill St., 8:32 a.m.
Car break: 465 Prospect St., 11:05 a.m.
North Andover
Car crash: Surrey Drive and Sutton Street, no injuries, 7:20a.m.
Car break: 148 Main St., 8:15 a.m.
Burglary: 273 Berry St., nothing taken, 11:56 a.m.
Andover
Car crash: Harold Parker Road, under investigation, 2:28 p.m.
Arrest: Daniel Gentile, 17, 26 Michael Way, assault and battery on a household member, 26 Michael Way, 4:31 p.m.
Car break: Haverhill Street, 4:34 p.m.
Car crash: River Road, no injuries, 4:57 p.m.
Lawrence
Arrest: Alexander Ventura, 22, 8 Diamond St., possession of a firearm without a firearms identification card, 4 Glenn St., 6:20 p.m.
Arrest: Jose Rivera, 31, 8 Landsdowne Court, distribution of cocaine, 32 Butler St., 7 p.m.
Arrest: William Schiff, 58, 13 Travelers Lane, Salem, N.H., possession of cocaine. 32 Butler St., 7 p.m.
Arrest: Mary Cullen, 59, 13 Travelers Lane, Salem, N.H., possession of cocaine, 32 Butler St., 7:10 p.m.
Arrest: Tommy Ventura, 24, 27 Linlew Drive, Derry, N.H., possession of a firearm without a firearms identification card, 4 Glenn St., 7:20 p.m.
