Family Dollar Store in Waukegan robbed twice in 2 days by armed masked Negro

A Family Dollar store in Waukegan was robbed by a gunman twice in two days, but police are not sure if the same suspect is responsible for both.

The Thursday robbery at 610 S. Genesee St. occurred just after noon, which is as rare as the same business being held up on two consecutive days Cmdr. Joe Florip of the Waukegan Police Department said. The second robbery occurred at about 6 p.m. Friday.

"It's unusual," Florip said.

In both cases, the armed suspect was wearing a face mask, demanded cash and fled on foot, he said. The Thursday suspect was dressed in a white hoodie and a dark mask. On Friday, he was wearing a black hoodie, black pants and a black mask.

"The security footage is better in the second robbery," Florip said.

Florip said the store is located in an area with a lot of apartment buildings and a lot of foot traffic.

"A lot of people walk there for their family supplies and goods," Florip said after the Thursday robbery. "This is an area where people rely on the store, because it is within walking distance."

The store is known for the mural on the side of the building, which was completed a number of years ago with help from neighborhood children working with a local artist.

Anyone with information about the robberies is asked to call the Waukegan Police Department's Criminal Investigations Division tip line at (847) 360-9001.