Man pretended to be DoorDash driver before robbing Spring Garden pizza shop at gunpoint: owner
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- Employees at a Spring Garden pizza shop were rattled Wednesday night after they said they were robbed at gunpoint by a man posing as a food delivery driver.
Surveillance video shared with CBS Philadelphia by an employee at La Gustosa captured the moment a man wearing all black and a face mask walked into the restaurant and approached the counter.
Owner Aftab Haque said the man claimed he was a DoorDash driver, but the pizza shop didn't have any orders waiting for pickup.
Video shows the man pull out a gun and direct an employee working behind the counter to empty the register. Moments later when a customer walks in, the gunman forces that person behind the counter, now with two employees. The masked man went through the customer's wallet, and then took off, Haque said.
Before Wednesday night, Haque said he never had any issues at his restaurant, which he's owned for about five months on the corner of Spring Garden and 15th Street.
"It appeared he'd been here," Haque said of the armed robber. "He walked very confidently, and he knew exactly where he was going."
The robbery was all the more shocking to Haque and his employees because of how close La Gustosa is to a police station. Philadelphia Police Headquarters is located just down the block, off 15th and Callowhill.
"I was very surprised and very upset how this can happen," Haque said. He plans to share the surveillance video with police as they investigate. Haque said the gunman left with about $2,000 in total.
Moving forward, Haque said he's considering implementing a policy that would require customers to remove any face masks before entering the pizza shop.
