‘The clerk was in on it’: Harrison police nab accomplice in gas station robbery
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Police say the robbery of a Harrison gas station earlier this month was staged.
“The clerk was in on it,” police Chief Mike Klein said, without elaborating further.
David Cousineau, 19, of Harrison is charged with criminal conspiracy, theft and receiving stolen property.
Police said he was party to a plan by Nicholas Dupree, 21, to rob the Sunoco in the 2600 block of Freeport Road on Valentine’s Day.
In court paperwork, police said Cousineau agreed to speak with officers. Cousineau told them that he and Dupree started talking about conspiring to rob the store a few weeks before. Cousineau said they were both struggling with money and it started out as a joke, but Dupree was serious about it.
Cousineau said he contacted Dupree on Feb. 14 and told him to come to the store to rob it, the complaint states.
Cousineau was working at the gas station when Dupree entered and held a knife to his throat, demanding money, according to police.
Cousineau originally told police that Dupree ordered him to empty three cash registers into a bag and then fled on foot.
Police said Cousineau told them he met Dupree after the robbery at a residence in Natrona Heights and then walked to Cousineau’s home where they split the money.
Police said Cousineau was carrying the money from the robbery and turned it over. The amount was not provided.
Klein said detectives were diligent in following up on the case and noticed clues on security footage that led to the determination of Cousineau’s participation in the crime.
Cousineau was arraigned Thursday by District Judge Carolyn Bengel and released on a $20,000 unsecured bond.
Officers from Harrison, Tarentum, Brackenridge and the Allegheny Valley police departments responded to the initial call Feb. 14 and arrested Dupree the next day on a felony count of robbery along with counts of theft, possession of an instrument of crime, simple assault and reckless endangerment.
Bengel denied bond for Dupree during his arraignment and ordered him detained in the Allegheny County Jail while awaiting a preliminary hearing in her court March 1.
Staff writer Brian Rittmeyer contributed to this report.