By Mary O’KEEFE

Glendale officers responded to a call concerning a robbery at the Whole Foods Market at 311 N. Glendale Ave. on Monday at about 2:38 p.m.

A La Crescenta woman, 44, was loading groceries into the trunk of her car in the market’s parking lot when a man, according to GPD report, approached her. The man grabbed her wallet that she was holding under her arm and fled on foot. The woman gave chase, all the while yelling for help. The suspect entered a dark gray four-door Mercedes-Benz with paper plates and fled northbound on Glendale Avenue.

This incident was shared on social media by the victim’s family who was upset that no one responded to her initial calls for help, not even the security guards at Whole Foods. According to the victim’s family, the robbery occurred about 10 to 30 feet from the front door of the store, and eventually a group of teenaged girls who were walking half a block away came to the victim’s aid.

CVW called the Glendale Whole Foods. The store manager said he could not comment because the robbery was still under investigation by the GPD.

An email to the California corporate office of Whole Foods had not been responded to by press time.

According to the GPD report, the store does have surveillance cameras; however, upon viewing the footage it was discovered it did not capture that area of the parking lot.

The suspect who grabbed the wallet is described as an African-American man, with short black hair, 15 to 20 years old, 5’5” tall with a thin build. At the time of the robbery he was wearing black sneakers, a gray shirt and dark basketball shorts.

A witness reported seeing the first suspect enter the Mercedes-Benz. The witness described the driver of the vehicle as an African-American man wearing a gray hoodie.

Anyone with information is asked to call the GPD at (818) 548-4911.

  Mary Okeefe