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Serial armed robber getting more bold

Posted at 5:42 PM, Apr 22, 2016
and last updated 2016-04-22 20:44:54-04

The serial armed robber that has terrorized store clerks in Polk and Osceola Counties struck again Friday morning for the sixth time in the last week.

The latest robbery happened at the Murphy USA gas station in Haines City.

Surveillance video and audio from the incident captured the man's demands.

"Get on the floor! Get on the floor, now!" The man is heard shouting to the clerk.

The man is dressed in similar clothing to the other cases, is shielding his face from the cameras, and the biggest clue, is left handed.

"Open the register! Hurry, hurry, hurry," he shouts.

The clerk listens to his demands and dumps the drawer of cash into a bag, fetches a carton of cigarettes as he asks, and lays on the ground.

The man is in and out within 40 seconds.

"I'm just happy to be OK," the clerk later told ABC Action News.

Haines City police are getting desperate to find the left-handed bandit who seems to be staying around the area.

"He is getting progressively more aggressive," said Asst. Chief Brian McNulty.

On Monday, the man actually opened fire just down the road at the Marathon gas station in Haines City.

If you look closely in that surveillance video, the manager at first smiles, thinking it's a joke. The bullet holes prove otherwise.

"I'm scared of him coming back," said Rakesh Rachaconda, the manager who went on to say he hasn't slept in two days.

"I'm going to put up more security, more cameras outside and inside to protect myself and my employees."

Police are now warning residents who may visit stores to stay extra vigilant. They're also meeting with store clerks to teach them how to behave to avoid escalating the violence if they find themselves in that situation.

"We don't know what is pushing this violent behavior, we don't know what's snapped that's making him do these things," McNulty said.