Photo: Pratt’s gun
SAN RAFAEL — A man was arrested about a minute after a robbery was committed at a downtown pharmacy. Responding officers happened to be only one block away when the robbery occurred.
A police dispatcher answered a 911 call from a store clerk on June 15th at 8:43 p.m. A man brandishing a weapon had just robbed the Walgreens Pharmacy located at 830 Third Street.
Of course, everything was recorded by store video surveillance cameras. The suspect entered and exited the store several times before the robbery. At one point, he attempted to make a purchase with a credit card, but his transaction was declined.
After the sale was refused, he left but returned once more. This time he approached a cash register and demanded the merchandise that he was unable to purchase.
He pulled a gun from his pocket and pointed it at a store clerk who calmly asked him to leave. Fortunately, the man put it back inside his pocket without harming anyone.
Rather than leaving immediately, he began stealing merchandise. While this was going on, the clerk phoned the police and asked all the customers to evacuate.
The police dispatcher barely finished giving officers a description of the suspect before they located him. In fact, the robber was just exiting Walgreens when officers arrived to meet him.
The suspect identified as 42-year-old Thomas L. Pratt, Jr., a cart attendant, was arrested without further incident. Pratt who lives in San Rafael is familiar to local law enforcement. He has several prior arrests for possession of controlled substances.
However, this time officers found Pratt in possession of a revolver reported stolen a few hours earlier. It was stolen during a burglary still under investigation.
Presently, Pratt’s open charges include numerous felonies, among them armed robbery and assault with a firearm.
Pending further investigation, he faces additional charges for the weapon stolen during the burglary in Novato.
Pratt remains in custody in Marin County Jail in lieu of $75,000 bond.
