Gwinnett Daily Post

LILBURN -- A clerk opening a local Family Dollar store was greeted by three men Tuesday morning, one brandishing a handgun before the trio fled with the contents of the store safe, police said.

At about 8 a.m., the clerk opened the Family Dollar at 5229 Lawrenceville Highway in Lilburn. The three men were waiting inside -- apparently having entered the building through a pipe on the roof, Lilburn police spokesman Capt. Bruce Hedley said.

"This is a very unique robbery where the suspects climbed on a ladder that was attached to the back of the building ... and broke through the top of the roof," Hedley said.

A witness called police as the suspects fled, and officers were able to nab one suspect in the wooded area behind the business. They were also able to recover a bag with an undetermined amount of cash nearby, Hedley said.

The detained suspect has been identified as 25-year-old Maurice Brooks of Atlanta. He has been charged with armed robbery.

Brooks was already wanted by the Gwinnett County Sheriff's Department for a probation violation and is also a registered sex offender.

Hedley said he wasn't sure if Brooks was the one carrying the gun reportedly used during the robbery.

"We don't know which of the three had the weapon at this time," he said.

The other two suspects are still at large and unidentified.