Police have arrested a man they say tried to rob an Upper East Side deli at gunpoint Tuesday, but fled when his shotgun jammed, according to police.
Alexander Pierson, 24, was charged with robbery and criminal possession of a weapon in the robbery, the NYPD said.
Police say Pierson, wearing a sleeveless shirt and blue pants, walked into the Elim Deli Cafe on Lexington Avenue around 8:30 a.m. and tried to rob the store before his shotgun jammed.
Javier Ramirez, who works in the store, said the suspect walked inside with the gun in the air and screamed at customers not to move.
"He tried to shoot into everybody, said, 'Put your hands up, give me all the cash,' like a movie," Ramirez said.
Ramirez and Fernando Garcia, the deli manager, said they chased the robber out of the store. Video shows him running north away from the deli, turning east then pitching the shotgun into a nearby garden.
Police told Garcia that surveillance video shows the man scoping out the deli before the attempted robbery. In one video, the butt of the shotgun can be seen sticking out of the suspect's pant leg.
No injuries were reported.
It wasn't immediately known if Pierson had an attorney.
