Jun 28, 2018 2 min read

A burglar who broke into a Washington convenience store early Wednesday made off with cash, lottery tickets and cigarettes, but how much was actually netted is a mystery since some of the items were found outside the store.

City police received a call at 4:20 a.m. from an alarm company advising a cash register motion alarm had been activated at 4:16 a.m. inside Mega Express at the corner of Ridge and Murtland avenues.

When police arrived, officers found the front door of the business was still secured. They could see inside the store and spotted lottery tickets on the floor behind the cash register.

The officers went around the building and discovered a hole on the south side where a vent to the air conditioning system had been pulled out. Found on the ground outside the building were lottery tickets, cash and packs of Newport cigarettes that apparently were dropped as the burglar fled. More lottery tickets were found over the hill from the store as the burglar apparently ran down Oak Street.

Two pairs of scissors and a pair of hedge clippers were found outside the store on the vent that had been removed from the building. Police believe the items may have been used to remove the vent.

Police were not immediately able to check the inside of the store because a store representative with a key could not be located. Detectives were expected to check to see if surveillance video is available.

Anyone who might have seen a suspicious person in the area is asked to call city police at 724-223-4226.