Men robbed Belleville McDonald’s with handguns, police say

Two armed men robbed a Belleville McDonald’s just before 5:30 a.m. Thursday, according to police.

The two men entered the store, located at 906 Carlyle Ave., with handguns and ordered everyone to the ground, witnesses told Belleville police.

One of the men grabbed a McDonald’s employee and demanded she open the safe in the store’s office. The other man stayed with the employees who were still on the ground, Master Sgt. Todd Keilbach wrote in a news release.

The two men then fled the scene with cash. The amount of money was not specified.

The employee who opened the safe was taken to the hospital for minor injuries — no one else was injured, according to Keilbach.

“No customers were present inside the store; however, there was a customer that went through the drive-thru just prior to the incident,” Keilbach wrote.

The suspects were described by several employees as black men in their late 20s, between 5-foot-6 and 5-foot-9 with medium builds. They were wearing blue bandanas, dark pants and dark hooded sweatshirts with the hood up.

An evidence technician could be seen inside the restaurant early Thursday morning, apparently trying to collect fingerprints.

The business was closed to customers as police investigated, but it reopened soon afterward.

McDonald’s personnel declined to comment on the robbery.

Anyone with information is asked to call the Belleville Police Department at 618-234-1212 or CrimeStoppers at 866-371-8477.

This story was originally published December 28, 2017 at 7:42 AM with the headline "Men robbed Belleville McDonald’s with handguns, police say."