A suspect is wanted in connection with the armed robbery of a Carl’s Jr. restaurant in Happy Valley this week, as well as other robberies in the area.
The incident at Carl’s Jr., located at 14665 SE Sunnyside Road, occurred at approximately 7 a.m. Thursday morning — shortly after the restaurant had opened for business.
Surveillance footage shows the suspect enter and go back to the kitchen, where he displayed a knife, forced the employees to give him money and then fled the restaurant in an unknown direction.
Clackamas County Sheriff’s Office deputies responded and searched for the suspect, along with Happy Valley Police, but the suspect was not located.
The suspect is believed to be connected to two similar armed robberies — the Dec. 18 robbery of a Kaady Car Wash in West Linn and the Dec. 20 robbery of a Subway in Gladstone. In each of these crimes, the suspect also used a knife and matches the description of the suspect in the Dec. 27 Carl’s Jr. robbery.
West Linn PD has dubbed the suspect the “Opening Bell Bandit” because of his tendency to rob locations right after they open for business.
The suspect is described as a heavyset white male, of indeterminate age, approximately six feet tall and weighing about 250 pounds. In his criminal acts, he wore a dark-colored ski mask, a gray sweatshirt, jeans and gloves. Witnesses also described him as having short, white facial hair.
If you recognize the suspect or have any information regarding these cases, you are asked to contact the Clackamas County Sheriff’s Office, by phone at 503-723-4949 or by using the online email form. Please reference CCSO Case #19-030627 for the Happy Valley robbery, #19-10068 for the one in West Linn and #19-030107 for the Gladstone case.
