Police in Montclair are seeking four men who robbed an ice cream vendor at gunpoint on Friday afternoon, then tried, but failed, to rob a woman of her purse minutes later, officials said.
The first crime unfolded about noon in the 4600 block of Holt Boulevard, the Montclair Police Department said in a written statement.
A man approached the vendor and posed as a customer, “but instead pulled out a silver semiautomatic pistol,” according to the statement. The robber took the victim’s money, as well as his ice cream.
The gunman, described as a black man in his 20s, about 5 feet to 5 feet, 2 inches tall, of thin build, then got into a black Chevrolet Impala with three other male suspect inside and fled, police said.
About 10 minutes later, a woman was approached by what police believed was the same group of men nearby in to 4800 block of Mission Boulevard.
A man grabbed her purse and tried to wrestle it away from her, but the woman held on. The would-be robber gave up and also fled the area in a black Chevrolet Impala with three other men inside.
“These two crimes appear to be related,” the police statement said.
Anyone with information was urged to contact Montclair police at 909-448-3600.