Incident is 2nd early-morning store robbery in a week

A robbery at Apollo Liquor Wednesday morning left two in custody and two at large as of Wednesday afternoon.

Officers responded to a report of a robbery at Apollo Liquor, 903 W. Oakland Ave., around 9:30 a.m. Wednesday, according to Police Lt. John Mueller. According to the report, four black men were shoplifting items from the liquor store when they were confronted by the store staff. They then forced their way past the clerk out of the store.

Officers were in the area and observed the suspect vehicle, a passenger car, and attempted to catch up. According to the report, three of the four black male suspects fled the vehicle on foot on the 300 block of Fourth Street Southwest. One suspect was apprehended in the vehicle and another was apprehended in the area. Officers were still looking for and trying to identify the other two suspects, according to the report.

Banfield Elementary School was on a soft lockdown for a time during the incident, as some programs are still taking place though children were not in school due to the holiday.

The two suspects in custody are awaiting formal charges, which likely include aiding and abetting simple robbery.

The robbery is the second early morning robber at an Austin store in a week. Last Thursday, a man armed with a knife robbed Ankeny’s Mini Mart No. 4. As of Tuesday, police had identified a suspect in the Ankeny’s case but charges were pending.

Both investigations ongoing, and anyone with information is encouraged to call 437-9400 or use the Tip411 app online.