Police investigating armed robbery at New Lenox 7-Eleven store

New Lenox police officers are investigating a weekend armed robbery at a 7-Eleven store.

At close to 11:30 p.m. on Saturday, police received a report of a robbery at the 7-Eleven at 100 E. Lincoln Highway, according to a news release from New Lenox police.

Officers met with a store employee who told them he was robbed at gunpoint by two men wearing masks, police said.

One of the men was armed with a handgun and both suspects stole fewer than $100 from the cash register, police said. Both men fled the scene before an alarm was activated.

The employee was not physically harmed during the incident.

In 2018, New Lenox village board members discussed ways to prevent robberies at 24-hour businesses after the 7-Eleven on Route 30 and Cedar Road and the Speedway on Route 30 were robbed twice over the course of several months. A gun was involved in each robbery, police said.

No one was hurt during the robberies. But New Lenox Deputy Police Chief Louis Alessandrini said there was “emotional distress,” and the village wants to ensure measures are put in place to deter similar crimes.

Alessandrini said on the same night that the 2018 incidents took place, another robbery happened within a short time in neighboring towns, including Joliet.

An ordinance was passed at the Dec. 17, 2018 village board meeting to amend the municipal code to increase and improve security at 24-hour retail establishments, according to the New Lenox village website.