Suspect Entered Store Twice Before Attack

The man suspected of beating and sexually assaulting a convenience store clerk early Tuesday visited the Cumberland Farms shop at least twice just before the incident, police said.

Police have been scouring surveillance footage looking for information that could help catch the suspect — described as a white male, about 6 feet tall, in his mid-20s.

“This is a horrendous crime here,” Shelton Detective Sgt. Kevin Ahern said, asking for any information that might help them find the suspect. ​“Any and all leads will be followed up on.”

Police said the suspect kidnapped a 46-year-old female clerk from the store, located at 819 River Road in Shelton.

The employee was ​“severely” beaten and then sexually assaulted, police said.

As of Tuesday afternoon, she remained in intensive care at an unidentified hospital with non-life-threatening injuries, police said.

The abduction happened between 2:15 and 2:30 a.m. Tuesday, Ahern said.

Surveillance footage shows the suspect inside the store two different times prior to the abduction, Ahern said.

Ahern estimated that the two visits were ​“relatively close” in time to the abduction.

Ahern would not go into detail about the contents of the footage.

He said it was clear that the person in the photo released to the media Tuesday was the person who abducted the store employee.

“It’s the same person,” Ahern said.

At about 2:42 a.m., Shelton police received a phone call from a customer who noticed the store was open and unattended, Ahern said.

Police said the woman was found a few miles away from the store, in the area of Sunnyside School. She had made it to a resident’s house, knocking on the door for help

Police received the call for help from the resident at about 4:15 a.m., Ahern said.

Police Tuesday searched the neighborhood where the victim was found, including the boat ramp behind Sunnyside School.

Ahern said there was also a report of a red car in the area during the general time of the abduction, but it’s not clear if the car is connected to the crime.

The store Tuesday was open for business.

At about noon, a regional loss prevention manager and two other Cumberland Farms managers were present at the store.

When asked if there would be extra security at the store, the regional loss prevention manager replied, ​“Why do you think I’m here?”

The loss prevention manager directed all comments through Cumberland Farms’ corporate office. The firm referred questions to local police.

Convenience workers are at risk for attack, especially those working late hours, according to the Federal Bureau of Labor Statistics.

In 2007, the overall incident rate for non-fatal violent encounters in the U.S. workplace was 2.6 — that is 2.6 incidents per every 10,000 workers.

The rate for convenience store workers — 20 per 10,000 workers.

The work is so dangerous the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration published a series of guidelines meant to increase worker safety.

The guidelines — which include everything from installing video cameras to reducing hours of operation — were updated earlier this year. Click here to download the OSHA document.

Police asked anyone with information about the crime to contact the Shelton Police Department at (203) 924‑1544.

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