Early in the morning, on April 5, a suspect robbed Pink’s Hot Dogs, the landmark stand at the corner of La Brea Avenue and Melrose Avenue.

At 3:00am, Los Angeles Police Department Wilshire Division officers received a radio call to investigate a robbery in the 700 block of North La Brea Avenue.  Two employees were closing the business and walking out the rear door when they saw a male suspect crouched behind a chair in the rear patio area.

The suspect approached them with a handgun, and ordered them to open the door to the business and allow him entry.

The suspect then forced the employees to lead him to the safe.  Once at the safe, the employees told the suspect that they did not know the combination.  The suspect demanded money from the employees, and one of the employees handed the suspect a twenty-dollar bill.  The suspect then told the employees not to move or he would shoot them and left the business.

The employees were not able to see if the suspect left on foot or in a car.

The suspect is described as an African-American male, approximately five-feet-eight-inches tall, weighing 170 pounds, and about 30 years old.  He was wearing a black jacket, black jeans, and a gray ski cap with a handkerchief over his face.

Anyone with information about this crime is asked to call Wilshire Area Robbery Detectives at (213)473-0154.