HOULTON, Maine — Thirsty Dawg owner Kent Good said Monday afternoon that in his eight years of business in Houlton he has never felt as violated as he did Friday when his shop was held up by an armed robber. He added that he has since armed himself.
“I feel violated,” Good said. “Armed robbery is a scary thing. I take it very personally. My crew is like my second family. It was a brazen act.”
No one has been arrested, and police continue to investigate the robbery that happened about 1 p.m. Dec. 9 at the 9 Florence Ave. business.
An individual about 6-feet-tall with a slim to medium build and dressed in a camouflage jacket, black pants, black mask and wearing black gloves walked into the store, brandished a gun and demanded money, according to police. The type of gun was not made public.
Good said he was not at the business at the time of the robbery, as he had just left to make a deposit at a local bank.
“One of the employees called me, the other called 911,” Good said. “The person who called me was hysterical. I couldn’t understand what she was telling me, so I got right back here immediately.”
Based on what his employees told him, Good said the subject entered the bottle redemption side of the business and stuck a gun into the back of one of two employees working there and demanded money. After taking what money there was in the bottle redemption business and the beer store, the subject fled on foot with an undisclosed amount of money. Good said he did not believe any alcohol was stolen.
“I will never forgot the feeling of my employee just trembling out of fear,” he said. “I’ve never seen a person that scared before.”
Despite the experience, Good said, both employees reported to work the next day.
A Maine State Police canine was brought in to track the suspect and followed his trail for a short distance down Bangor Street before losing the scent, likely because the robber got into a vehicle, according to investigators.
Good commended the Houlton Police Department for its quick response and thanked the community for the overwhelming support he has received in the days since the robbery.
He plans to install new security cameras both inside and outside the property, and he will install additional lighting outside the building. He also took another step to ensure that something similar does not happen.
“I have never owned a gun in my life until Saturday,” he said. “I will not be violated like that again. I am not a gun guy, but I will take steps to protect my crew and my property. That said, there is nothing in this building worth losing your life over.”