78-year-old refuses to be a victim

Published 12:00 am Friday, January 13, 2012

SALISBURY — A 78-year-old man thwarted an attempted robbery Thursday afternoon when a man pinned his arm in a laundromat washing machine.
The man was approached by another man wearing a red jacket inside 813 S. Fulton St. about 3 p.m., Salisbury Police said.
The suspect asked the man “where he could get change from the machine,” the report said, but the 78-year-old told him he had never been there before and didn’t know.
The would-be robber then pinned the man’s arm in a washing machine as he was reaching in for his clothes, and attempted to take the man’s wallet from his back pocket.
The 78-year-old yelled and grabbed the man’s hair with his other arm, officers said.
The suspect was last seen heading south on South Fulton Street on foot.
Salisbury Police said they are continuing to investigate the incident and ask that anyone with information call 704-638-5333 or Crime Stoppers at 1-866-639-5245.