OKLAHOMA CITY, Okla. (KFOR) – The Oklahoma City Police Department is seeking your help to find a wannabe robber who he tried stealing money from a massage parlor in Northwest Oklahoma City before an employee fought back.
OCPD posted surveillance video on their social media channels Tuesday.
It shows a man in a black baseball cap and black hoodie pacing back in forth inside AA Massage at 4130 Northwest Expressway on March 18 around 12:30 p.m.
The man allegedly told an Asian worker he was an undercover police officer and demanded their money.
“He said, ‘you turn over your money,’ pulled out his handcuffs, put her in a headlock,” explained Steve Nash, the massage parlor’s attorney.
Nash said the worker fought him off and ran outside.
“She’s a warrior,” he continued. “This guy may have thought she was timid, but she’s not.”
The ruckus caught the ears of the Armed Forces Recruiting center next door.
“I heard a huge commotion outside, a bunch of screaming, but it was kind of broken english,” said U.S. Marines Sgt. Reid Martin. “I didn’t really know what they were saying.”
Matters made more sense when he went outside and engaged the assage parlor workers.
“And finally they kind of did the gesture of someone had grabbed one of them by the neck,” Martin said.
Then, an urgent call to 911 as a black sedan zipped out of the parking lot, but they weren’t able to capture the license plate.
The hope now is that the public recognizes the wannabe robber in the surveillance video, and helps put him in handcuffs.
“They’re very concerned about their security and if this guy gets caught, it’ll perhaps discourage others from breaking in,” Nash said.
He represents about 30 massage parlors in the OKC Metro and believes the suspect may be responsible for a few more similar incidents against his clients in recent days.
“A lot of thieves think that these are soft targets because of the language issues,” he said.
Anyone with info on the attempted robbery at AA Massage is asked to call Oklahoma City Crimestoppers at 405-235-7300 or www.okccrimetips.com. The case number is #23-18815 and a cash reward is possible.