PHOENIX — An employee at the Shake Shack in Kierland Commons is facing charges after allegedly robbing the restaurant at gunpoint, locking two co-workers in a walk-in cooler and returning to work in uniform two days later, court documents reviewed by FOX 10 Phoenix show.
Authorities say Keondre Simmons, 33, called out about midnight on Aug. 3 and then showed up at the restaurant later that morning to commit the robbery, according to the documents. Investigators learned that an employee opened a rear delivery door after hearing a bell and believing a scheduled delivery had arrived, the documents state.
The documents say the suspect pointed a firearm at the employee, ordered him inside and forced him into the walk-in cooler. Police wrote that the suspect then forced the on-duty manager into the office, ordered him to open the safe and took about $2,800 in mixed denominations, placing it into a black gun case-style container.
Investigators wrote that both victims eventually escaped the cooler, but the suspect returned moments later, escorted them to the office and ordered them to kneel at gunpoint. Police say the suspect seized the victims’ cellphones and the office landline, destroyed them by throwing them into a sink of water, and exited through the rear delivery door.
Court documents state investigators later identified Simmons. Two days after the robbery he returned to the Shake Shack wearing his work uniform and was arrested, the documents say. Simmons told investigators he discarded the clothing worn during the incident and that a firearm is inside his residence, according to the documents. He faces charges of armed robbery, aggravated assault and kidnapping and is scheduled to appear in court Aug. 25.
Jon Ross Myers is the executive editor and publisher of the Mississippi News Network, Mississippi's largest digital only media company. He can be reached at editor@tippahnews.com
