A Pizza Hut employee in New Mexico reported that a masked gunman had entered the restaurant, demanded money from the register and fled. Five days later, police arrested the employee on allegations tied to missing cash and a false robbery report.
Sean Crandall, 22, of Portales, was taken into custody Oct. 2 and booked into the Roosevelt County Detention Center. The Portales Police Department announced that Crandall faced allegations of embezzlement and filing a false police report.
The Eastern New Mexico News, citing court records and an arrest affidavit, reported that investigators believe Crandall fabricated the robbery account in an effort to conceal embezzled cash.
The case began around 9 p.m. Sept. 27 at the Pizza Hut at 1001 North Chicago Avenue, after police received a report of an armed robbery. No employees were injured.
A Nearby Camera Did Not Show Anyone Entering Through the Door
The original account described a man entering through the restaurant’s south-side doors, displaying a pistol and demanding money from the register. The employee complied, and the man then left through the same doors, according to the initial police account.
Crandall later told investigators that the supposed robber had been wearing a ski mask, according to The Eastern New Mexico News.
But surveillance footage from a nearby business did not show anyone entering the Pizza Hut through its southern door at the time Crandall described, the newspaper reported from court records. No other restaurant employee witnessed the alleged robbery.
The investigating officer wrote in Crandall’s arrest affidavit that those observations led him to interpret Crandall’s report as untruthful.
Police scheduled an interview with Crandall for Oct. 1, but court records cited by The News say he did not appear. He was arrested the following day and booked into the Roosevelt County Detention Center.
The Court Record Lists One Misdemeanor Embezzlement Count
The Oct. 5 case summary identifies the prosecution as State of New Mexico v. Sean Crandall, case M-44-MR-202600179, in Portales Magistrate Court. The criminal complaint was filed Oct. 2, and the case was assigned to Judge Christopher A. Mitchell.
The court record lists one count of embezzlement involving property valued at more than $250 but no more than $500 under New Mexico Statutes Section 30-16-8(A) and (C). The charge is classified as a misdemeanor.
New Mexico’s embezzlement law defines the offense as fraudulently converting something of value that was entrusted to a person, with intent to deprive the owner. Property valued at more than $250 but no more than $500 falls within the misdemeanor tier.
Police Also Announced a False-Report Allegation
The Portales Police Department’s arrest announcement listed embezzlement and filing a false police report in connection with Crandall’s arrest. The Oct. 5 Magistrate Court summary for case M-44-MR-202600179 currently lists one misdemeanor embezzlement count.
The record identifies the Ninth Judicial District public defender’s office as Crandall’s defense counsel. No plea, disposition or hearing date appears in the Oct. 5 case summary.
The allegations against Crandall have not been proven in court, and he is presumed innocent unless proven guilty.