Police Looking for Robbers Who Tried to Hit Brooklyn Deli 3 Times in 1 Month

Police are looking for two robbers who tried to hit a Brooklyn store so many times that a clerk held the door when one of them tried to get in the store on Sunday.

One of the robbers pointed a gun at the clerk and stole cash and cigarettes from the deli on Avenue Z in Sheepshead Bay on Oct. 22. A suspect tried to hit the store again Nov. 16, banging on the store's glass door before leaving empty-handed. 

But when one of them tried to rob the store for the second straight week Sunday,  the clerk thwarted the robbery before the suspect could get in the store. 

The first suspect walked in and bought a Red Bull, the store's owner said. Then, once he saw the second suspect approaching, he rushed around the counter, knocked over a display and holds the door shut. The would-be robber yanked at the door for a few seconds before walking off when a patrol car drove nearby.

After the struggle, the store clerk ran out of the store and tried to wave down the officer. 

The men are also suspected in a pair of other robberies in south Brooklyn over the last several weeks. 

On Oct. 5, three robbers went into another store in Sheepshead Bay, where one of them pulled out a gun before the trio tied up the clerk and stole cartons of cigarettes.

About seven minutes after a suspect banged on the glass door at the Avenue Z store Nov. 16, a robber hit a bodega on nearby Neptune Avenue, stealing cash and cigarettes.

If you have information on the robberies, call Crime Stoppers at 1-888-577-8477.

--Tracie Strahan contributed to this story

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