A Philadelphia man is behind bars after he allegedly robbed the Liberty Gas Station on Harleysville Pike at gunpoint early last week.
Carlos Gaillard, 29, has been charged with felony counts of armed robbery, prohibited possession of a firearm, and carrying a firearm without a license, along with misdemeanor counts of possessing an instrument of crime, possession of a weapon, reckless endangerment, theft by unlawful taking, simple assault and related offenses.
He’s currently being held at the county jail in lieu of $50,000 cash bail.
Franconia Township Police were dispatched to the 300 block of Harleysville Pike just after 9:30 p.m. on Sept. 26 to investigate a silent hold up alarm. Police spoke with the clerk, who stated a light-skinned Black male — later identified as Gaillard — entered the store wearing black clothing, a face mask and dark sunglasses entered the store, pointed a gun at her, ordered her to turn off the lights, then took money from the cash register and ordered her to provide the keys to the in-store ATM and gaming machines, according to charging documents.
After the money was gathered, Gaillard told the clerk to lay on the floor of the bathroom for 10 minutes, however while she was on the ground, she heard a loud bang and peeked out the door, police said. Gaillard allegedly saw the clerk peeking out and pointed the gun at her head, then fled the scene a short time later.
While speaking to investigators, the clerk identified the suspect as Gaillard — a frequent customer who would stop in to by gas and cigar wraps, police said. The clerk stated the man walked with a unique gait, had a tattoo on his neck, and noted that during the robbery, the suspect’s sunglasses lowered, revealing Gaillard’s “distinctive eye and eye shape,” according to the complaint.
The manager of the gas station later spoke with investigators, stating that the clerk’s description matched a customer he previously met named “Los,” who worked as a cook at a nearby country club, the report states. The manager also identified the suspect’s unique gait, and provided police with the customer’s phone number, which was traced back to Gaillard, according to the report.
After tracing the phone, investigators learned police had stopped Gaillard during a separate incident in the parking lot of the country club on Sept. 23. Notes from the stop indicated Gaillard had a tattoo on his neck and a “very distinctive gait when he walked,” according to police.
Gaillard was taken into custody on Sept. 28 and arraigned by District Judge Henry Schireson, who set bail at $50,000 cash. His next court appearance is a preliminary hearing on Nov. 7 at 1:45 p.m. in front of District Judge Albert Augustine.
All suspects and defendants are innocent until proven guilty. This story was compiled using court records and the affidavit of probable cause. This story was updated to reflect the child's current custody status.
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