Security footage shows brazen gunpoint robbery at Toronto fast food restaurant

New surveillance footage has surfaced showing a brazen gunpoint robbery at a Parkdale A&W restaurant on Thursday night.

In the video, captured on Thursday evening at around 7 p.m., a man with a face covering is seen at the counter ordering food. When he hands over cash to pay, he removes what appears to be a firearm from the pocket of his sweatshirt, pointing it at the cashier while he attempts to remove cash from the register. The cashier runs back towards the kitchen, using a garbage can as a shield to protect himself.

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The suspect then jumps over the counter, yelling at the employees to “go” while customers flee the store. The suspect takes the money and then flees the restaurant himself.

In an interview with CP24, franchise owner Achintya Roy said police did not immediately respond to the restaurant’s call for help, arriving at the scene several hours after the incident. Roy says the area surrounding the restaurant, at Queen Street West and Macdonnell Avenue, has become dangerous in the last several months, with an increased visibly homeless population and a larger prevalence of public intoxication.

According to Roy, the restaurant’s front door and windows have been smashed “several times" in recent months.

“It’s very hard for us to do business,” he said. “We’re scared to work here. We’re open 24 hours and we’re scared to be here. Even the night shift has a lot of problems, and the police never show up. I don’t know how we’re going to keep going.” Roy added that the restaurant has re-opened since Thursday’s incident.

In an email to CP24, a representative for the Toronto Police Service said there is an “ongoing investigation” into the robbery.

Police contended the restaurant's owner's claim that officers were slow to respond. In a subsequent email, police said officers were dispatched at 7:22 p.m. and arrived at the scene at 7:26 p.m.

 

No injuries or arrests have been reported in connection with the incident.