Store employee critical after being stabbed

An employee trying to help a customer at a Hunting Park convenience store early yesterday was repeatedly stabbed by the man during what turned out to be an attempted robbery.

Authorities are hoping someone will recognize the robber, whose image and attack were captured on surveillance video.

"He had absolutely no regard, and he's extremely violent," Lt. Frank Vanore of the Public Affairs Unit said of the robber. "As far as we know, he still has this knife with him, and he's considered extremely dangerous."

Based on the surveillance video police showed at a news conference, the crime happened at 5:34 a.m. inside the Sunoco station at Fifth Street and Erie Avenue.

A steady stream of customers was going in and out of the convenience store when a man entered with his hand in his right pocket. He began asking questions of the two employees working the cash register behind a Plexiglas enclosure.

One of the employees, a 54-year-old man whom police did not identify, came around the counter and began assisting the customer. Part of the conversation was in Spanish and not everything could be heard clearly.

After a pause, during which the employee kept his eyes on the man's right hand inside his pocket, the man casually pulled out a weapon that resembled a horseshoe with two blades several inches apart and several inches long. Vanore said the weapon may be something used in martial arts.

Then, while the victim looked at the blade, the man grabbed the employee around the neck and moved the knife toward the victim's face.

The victim was stabbed seven times, including wounds to the chest and stomach, Vanore said. All the while, the assailant demanded money. He fled without obtaining any, Vanore said.

The victim was taken to Temple University Hospital, where he remained in critical condition yesterday.

Police described the robber as a Latino, 25 to 30 years old, six feet tall, and of medium build. He was wearing a gray hoodie under a brown leather jacket, jeans, and a dark baseball cap. Anyone with information is being asked to call police at 215-686-8477.