Armed robbers strike Fords liquor store

WOODBRIDGE — Armed robbers struck a Fords liquor store and threatened the lives of an employee’s family last week, police said.

The robbery occurred around 8:30 p.m. on Dec. 27, after the three suspects spent several minutes in the Fords Super Value Liquors store on New Brunswick Avenue looking at products and asking about prices, according to reports.

The suspects were described as Hispanic males, possibly Dominican or Puerto Rican, all about 5 feet 6 inches tall, with husky builds and wearing baggy clothing, winter jackets and hats, police said.

Two employees, a male and female, were working at the time of the robbery, police said.

The suspects asked about the price of the largest bottle of Johnnie Walker Red and balked at the cost. One of the suspects also selected a soda from the cooler and paid for it, police reports said.

The employees told police that the suspects started to walk out of the store, but while their backs were turned, they were ordered to lie on the ground, police said.

When the employees turned around, one of the suspects was pointing a black semiautomatic handgun with a silver barrel at them, police said.

The employees complied and the suspects began to take money from the cash register, cigarettes, lottery tickets and cases of liquor, police said.

One of the suspects took the female employee’s purse before leaving. He told the employee he knew where she lived and would kill her family if she called the police, according to police.

As the robbers left, one of them stepped on the male employee’s hand twice as he lay on the ground, police said.

The female employee told police she speaks Spanish. She believes the robbers, who at times spoke in broken English, may have been Dominican or Puerto Rican, judging by their dialects, police said.

— Bryan Sabella