Woman, 70, attacked at ice cream parlour during broad daylight
A 70-year-old woman was assaulted and robbed by two men inside her downtown Penticton business early Wednesday
Ogo’s Ice Cream owner Sharon Brown had just arrived at the shop, which is located at 166 Main St. directly across from city hall, when the attack happened.
“It was a normal morning. I came early to do my prep for the day to make the salads and stuff we do for lunch. I was in the store, I didn’t hear anybody come in, but all of a sudden there were two guys in masks and hoodies behind me wanting the money,” Brown told Global News.
“I was screaming and kicking at them and one guy had a screwdriver and he’s telling me he’s going to stick me if I don’t stop screaming. The other guy is waving his hammer and he’s telling me to shut up.”
Brown said she kept kicking and screaming, prompting the man with the hammer to hit her a couple of times on her left arm. They demanded she open the cash register, but when she was unable to do so, the men tried prying it open with a screwdriver. When that effort failed, they simply took the whole cash register and ran.
Save for bandages on her left arm, Brown didn’t appear to have any other physical injuries when she spoke to Global, but said the incident left her fearful.
“I have young girls working here – 15 and 16 – and I can’t leave them alone here now. I worry for their safety. If this could happen in the daylight, it could happen in the evening, too,” said Brown.
Penticton RCMP didn’t respond to a request for comment Wednesday.
The attack happened six days after city council voted against a proposal to immediately request five more RCMP officers from the national force. Council did, however, vote to request two officers and hire a consultant to make recommendations to improve public safety.
Also last week, Statistics Canada released fresh data that put Penticton’s crime severity index at 14th highest among 325 communities in Canada with populations over 10,000.