Video shows brazen robber putting gun to clerk's head

HOUSTON (KTRK) -- Investigators are asking you to look at surveillance video in hopes of locating those responsible for robbing a cell phone store in East Harris County Monday morning.

Two men walked into A International cell phone store on Woodforest Boulevard. One acted as a look-out and another pointed his gun directly at the terrified young clerk.

They got away with an iPhone and about $100 in cash.

"They just want easy money," said the store owner. "Easy come, easy go. So I hope they catch them so they learn their lesson."

But that's not what happened next. Following a vehicle description, dozens of HCSO deputies rushed over. They detained five suspects, three of them juveniles. At first, they thought the case was closed.

"They're not wanted," said HCSO Sgt. M. Alvarado. "We have nothing on them, so we're going to release them."

All five were released because the clerk couldn't identify them and they didn't have any stolen property on them. But investigators believe they're part of a group responsible for fifteen to twenty other robberies.

"They started in mid-December and steadily increased into the new year," said Sgt. Alvarado. "Similar MO, similar suspect description."

If you recognize the suspects in the video, contact the Harris County Sheriff's Office.