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July 24, 2001
By Aspen C. Emmett A young man armed with a revolver robbed the Mesa Verde Motel in Mancos late Sunday evening and then disappeared into the night. According to Mancos Marshal David Palacios, no one was injured in the robbery and the only thing taken from the motel was an undisclosed amount of cash. No arrests have been made in the incident. Palacios said the motel’s manager, Robin Schmittel, had just locked the front entrance to the motel office when the young man, who appeared to be in his teens, rang the doorbell at approximately 10:05 p.m. and asked for change. Schmittel allowed the unknown male into the office, where the boy brandished a gun and stated, "Give me your cash." Schmittel’s wife, Donna, was behind a curtain in a connecting room and immediately dialed 911 when she heard the robber’s demand. While attempting to comply, Robin Schmittel reportedly struggled with opening the cash register. His wife came out from behind the curtain to help with the register, meanwhile leaving the phone line open as the robbery unfolded. The boy pointed the gun directly at both victims at close range, Palacios said, and once the couple gave the boy the money from the register, he fled on foot. "They couldn’t tell which way he left because it was dark outside." Minutes later, Palacios and two deputies arrived at the motel. "We did a circular canvas of the area around the hotel looking for any kind of evidence but we didn’t find anything," he said. Palacios would not release any specific information regarding possible physical evidence such as fingerprints left at the crime scene. "We’re not going to release that right now but we did collect some evidence," he said. The Schmittels described the boy as a 14- to 16-year-old Hispanic male wearing a black, hooded zip-up sweatshirt and blue-jeans shorts. They estimated the boy was about 5 feet 5 and weighed approximately 120 pounds. "They said he appeared to be very young — no facial hair." Palacios said the robber did not make any other demands or threats. "They were calm, they complied and you can’t do anything but that," Palacios said of the Schmittels’ response. "The circumstances would have warranted instant panic but they handled it perfectly — I was really impressed and pleased." Palacios said he believed the robbery was just a random act and the boy had not targeted the motel for any other reason beyond it being one of the few establishments still open at the late hour. "You have instant access to the highway and there’s just nothing else open that late at night," he said. Palacios commented that generally motels do not keep large amounts of money in their register, as most transactions are done by credit card. "I think it’s just a hit-and-miss kind of thing but if you’re desperate for money you’ll try anything." Donna Schmittel added she will no longer keep cash on hand at the motel. "I’ll start making night deposits," she said. If the suspect is apprehended in the robbery, he will face at least three different charges: felony aggravated robbery, felony menacing and theft. |
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Copyright © 2001 the Cortez Journal.
All rights reserved. |
