Man robs UA-area store

Tucson police Sgt. Brett Klein said the robber fled from CD Depot, 1712 E. Speedway Blvd., at about 8:20 p.m. with an undisclosed amount of cash.

"He indicated that he had a weapon," Klein said.

A university police officer was nearby when the robbery occurred, said Cmdr. Brian Seastone, a University of Arizona Police Department spokesman.

"Our officer was almost right next to it when the robbery took place," Seastone said.

The robber then fled across East Speedway Boulevard, said Sandra Dennis, a theater arts freshman who witnessed the pursuit.

Dennis said the thief continued running through a UA Zone 1 parking lot on the corner of Speedway and North Cherry Avenue and ducked behind a building near Cherry and East Helen Street.

"I'm guessing he had a gun because I saw something sticking out of his pocket as he was running," she said.

Dennis said two men were pursuing the robber but she couldn't determine if they were police officers.

One of the men approached her and asked her where the thief went, she said.

After Dennis replied, she said the man pulled out a gun, told her to "go home" and continued to chase the robber.

Police then began a search that involved a helicopter, dogs and officers from both Tucson and university police.

A store employee refused comment, but police said neither he nor officers sustained injuries during the incident.

Klein said the robber is a white man about 6-foot-1-inch tall and in his 40s. He was wearing a blue shirt and jeans and had brown hair but was wearing a baseball cap.

At 11:30 last night, a TPD representative said no arrests had been made.

David J. Cieslak can be reached via e-mail at David.J.Cieslak@wildcat.arizona.edu.