Manatee County Sheriff’s Office investigates two armed robberies

Aspen Dental and Taco Bell were the targets of two armed robberies on University Parkway today.

The first robbery occurred at Aspen Dental, near the intersection of University and Honore Avenue, at 10:37 a.m. The alleged suspect pointed a handgun at two receptionists, demanding their wallets. The two receptionists fled into the back offices. The man then turned to a customer sitting in the area. The customer gave the suspect his wallet and the man fled.

The second incident occurred at 10:44 a.m. at Taco Bell located at Lockwood Ridge Road and University Parkway. The male suspect entered the restaurant, showed the register employee a handgun, and demanded money from the register and from three of the employees, but only one had a wallet. The employees set the cash tray on the counter and the man took out the cash and the other employee’s wallet.

The suspect described in both robberies was a white man in his 20’s, wearing a long-sleeve blue shirt, jeans and black shoes. The suspect of the Taco Bell robbery was seen driving away in a older-model, dark blue Volvo.

The Sheriff’s Office believes the two incidents are related. Anyone with information is asked to call the Sheriff’s Office at 941-747-3011 or Crime Stoppers, which is anonymous, at 866-634-TIPS.