Suspect uses Mountain Dew to rob a mini-mart in Madera

FRESNO, CA -- Investigators in Madera, California, are searching for a suspect who assaulted a cashier and robbed him. But it's what he used to rob the clerk that's getting attention.

At Madera Avenue Market nothing gets past Fnu Herbans Lal. "I'm just watching the cameras, the people, new people, new guy," said Herbans Lal.

He sees every corner of this store, and after a recent attack, he's paying even closer attention.

"Sometimes I work at night so I feel scared," said Herbans Lal. He's scared because of a suspect who used Mountain Dew as a diversion to steal hundreds of dollars. Investigators said a man in his early 20s splashed the drink then fumbles trying to grab the raining cash.

"I've never seen in my time as an investigator a person throw soda at a cashier in order to facilitate a robbery," said Detective Shant Sheklanian with the Madera Police Department.

And that soft drink is also the reason why investigators say they're having a tough time tracking this guy down.

"After interviewing the cashier, we learned he had to clean up the soda and had wiped away the surface and any latent prints that had been left behind," said Sheklanian.

Herbans Lal said the thief got away, but if there's a next time the thief won't be as lucky. The suspect got away with $500 when he walked out of the store.