Worker In Santa Hat Foils Robbery With Power Washer
Skeleton-Masked Robber Sprayed In Face

December 30, 2008 PORTLAND, Ore. -- A gun-wielding robber wearing a white skeleton ski mask got away with nothing after a worker at a carwash sprayed him in the face with a pressure washer, police said.

The masked man walked into the Washman Autospa at 426 N.E. 81st Ave. at about 10:45 a.m., pulled a gun out of his sweatshirt and demanded money, said Catherine Kent, of the Portland Police Bureau.

The robber then dropped the gun and it fell apart so he threatened the worker with his fist as he continued to demand money, Kent said.

The worker walked with the robber over to a booth and opened up the till, but when the robber reached for the money, the employee grabbed a power washer and sprayed the man in the face, Kent said.

The robber left the business without taking any money and ran down Northeast Everett Street, Kent said.

Kelsey Entz who works at the Montavilla Community Center, near the Washman said she expects these types of crazy things but it doesn't make her feel any safer.

"It doesn't surprise me. There's always random crazy stuff going on around here, but that's too bad," Entz said. "It's a little bit scary. I work here in the evenings most nights by myself and I already feel unsettled enough at it is with what the neighborhood is like. He could have come in here."

Some people in the area said they just can't believe someone would even rob a car wash.

"I don't know what's going to happen next. You already got people robbing banks, but now car washes? How low can you go?" neighbor Devon Campbell-Williams said.

The robber is described as a white man in his 20s, 6 feet tall and 180 pounds with dark eyes and unusually long arms. At the time of the robbery, he was wearing a black hooded sweatshirt, black pants and a white skeleton ski mask.

Crime Stoppers is offering up to $1,000 for information that leads to an arrest in the case. Tips can be submitted by calling 503-823-4357 or by visiting http://www.crimestoppersoforegon.com.

Worker Foils Robbery With Power Washer