By JONATHAN BAGLEY
The Storehouse Market at 630 N. Freedom Blvd. was robbed Thursday at 11:25 p.m., according to police.
The nature of the crime cannot be determined because the clerk doesn't knows if the man had a gun or if he was pointing a candy bar from his pocket, said Capt. George Pierpont of the Provo Police Department.
Pierpont said the possible gunman told the clerk he had a gun, but the clerk said if he had one he kept it hidden.
The clerk told police a white male, age 35 to 40, walked into Storehouse as a normal customer. He wore a white baseball cap, dark jacket and light colored pants. The clerk described the suspect as being 5 feet 8 inches tall and weighing 150 pounds.
The man proceeded to go through the checkout and then coerced the clerk to empty the cash drawer out by threatening to use an unseen gun on him, Pierpont said.
Pierpont said the thief escaped with an undisclosed amount of money. The man headed north to 700 North and then traveled toward University Avenue, Pierpont said.
Provo police and Utah County sheriffs arrived within two to three minutes after the man fled the market, Pierpont said.
The sheriffs aided the Provo police search with tracker dogs, but were not able to track down the man. He did not leave a strong enough odor at the store, Pierpont said.
Witnesses of the crime spent time Friday at the Provo police station describing the suspect for the sketch artist.
Students in the area at the time of the robbery were instructed by law enforcement to remain in their apartments, Pierpont said.
The manager of Storehouse Markets refused to comment on the case because he said he didn't want to draw attention to his store's robbery.