NYPD: Man Faces Charges In Upper West Side Robbery Spree
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- A man has been charged with robbery and attempted robbery in connection with two incidents on the Upper West Side.
Police arrested Willy Paulino, 23, of Manhattan on Monday.
On Feb. 22 at around 8:30 p.m., a man walked into Columbus Avenue Stationery at 695 Columbus Ave. and demanded cash from an employee at gunpoint, police said. However, a customer entered the store and the suspect took off without any property.
The store's owner "was shaking like you wouldn't believe it," a longtime customer of the store told CBS2's Ilana Gold. "And I know them. It's a very quiet couple from India, and they're very hardworking because they open at 7 and they close at 11."
On Feb. 23 around 2:10 a.m., the same suspect entered Europan, at 2197 Broadway, walked behind the counter while an employee was distracted and took cash from the register before fleeing, police said. The employee followed the suspect, but retreated when he pulled out a gun.
