RCMP seeking suspects in armed robbery in Esterhazy

It was a scary night Tuesday for employees at the Kaposvar One Stop Service in Esterhazy.

Two masked individuals, a man and a woman, entered the gas station at around 7:40 p.m. Owner Baljinder Sohi said he was sitting down and chatting with employees and some friends when it happened.

“I thought they were joking due to coronavirus; they have put on big masks. But suddenly she got the gun out and said, ‘Put in this bag whatever you have,’ ” Sohi said.

Instead of just giving them the money, he said he threw a chair at the armed woman.

“She got scared and, in the meantime, I snatched her gun. I dragged her to the floor and the guy, he went out and the employees locked the door because they thought he ran away,” Sohi said.

But the man wasn’t running away. Instead, he turned his truck — which police said was a white 2008 Ford F250 — into a battering ram.

“He broke open the door and brought the truck inside,” Sohi said.

At that point, Sohi said he was worried the truck was going to injure some of his employees. That’s when he released the female suspect.

“I let her go and she got in the truck and (they) ran away,” Sohi said.

(Photo courtesy of Kaposvar One Stop Esso)

He said the damages done to the gas station are about $40,000 to $50,000.

“They broke the front wall of the store badly. He got the truck inside the store,” said Sohi, who took over the business last October. “At least nobody was hurt and I gave the gun to police.”

While repairs are needed, Sohi said the business is open and is getting temporary doors put in.

“Local people have supported us in this situation and I am very much grateful to the people of Esterhazy for that,” Sohi said.

“They gave us moral support. They sent the message that they are with us and that’s the support we need. We will repair and we will move on like this. We are not afraid.”

Police said the truck, with the licence plate 218 ILB, was reported stolen from the Whitewood area.

Anyone with information about the robbery is asked to call the Esterhazy RCMP at 306-743-5600 or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477.