Bend police release robbery getaway car description

A masked gunman held up a northeast Bend ARCO gas station early Tuesday morning, and a shot was fired during a struggle with an employee, police said.

The worker was injured, but not by the gunshot, they said, adding that the robber got away with an undisclosed amount of cash.

Around 6 a.m., police rushed to the ARCO station at 575 NE Bellevue Drive, near the intersection of NE 27th Street and Highway 20, said Capt. Jim Porter.

Bend police Lt. Ben Gregory said a man walked into the store, showed a gun and demanded cash.

There was a struggle for the gun, with at least one shot being fired, Porter said.

On Wednesday, police identified the “vehicle of interest” as a darker-colored SUV, believed to resemble an early 2000s Jeep Cherokee. Anyone with information about the case was asked to contact police at (541) 693-6911.

The ARCO employee was taken to St. Charles Medical Center for treatment of injuries, then released, Porter said.

Adrienne Stuart was taking her dog, Gracie Allen, for a walk near her retirement home when a gunshot rang out.

“Her ears went back, body dropped, her head whipped around and we literally went right back in the building,” Stuart described.

Co-workers told NewsChannel 21 the victim is the store’s manager — he’s been at this location for about six months, but has been with the company much longer.

John O’Connor lives at The Vintage retirement home, right across the street from the gas station. He says he saw someone lingering in the dark just a few hours before the robbery.

“There was enough light that I could tell there was somebody walking around the gas station, trying to scope it out. People walk through here all the time, but they don’t do that,” O’Connor said.

The suspect was described as a white male adult, about 5-foot-7. He was wearing a white jacket, shorts and a mask covering his face, Porter said.

Crime scene tape was strung around the station, located beside a Starbucks Coffee busy with early-morning customers.