North Avenue Laundry Owner Choked, Robbed in Alley Behind Business

The owner of a North Avenue business fell victim Friday night to a robber who grabbed him from behind, took his cash and ran off past a group of witnesses, some of whom gave chase.

At 9:19 p.m., the owner of Bond Maytag Laundromat, 6707 W. North Ave., a Wauwatosa resident, called police to say he had been the victim of a strong-arm robbery in the alley behind his business.

He told officers he was taking garbage to the trash bin behind , 6715 W. North Ave., when a man grabbed him from behind, put him in a choke hold and demanded his money.

He said the suspect reached into his pocket and took his cash but dropped most of it when he fled.

Several witnesses who were smoking in the alley behind the tavern heard the victim call out, “He’s got my money!” and looked up to see the suspect running past, losing a shoe in the process.

A couple of the witnesses gave chase, but the robber disappeared had a head start and disappeared in the residential blocks to the south. Police surrounded the area but were unable to find him.

The victim and witnesses all said the suspect was a black male in his 20s, about 6-feet to 6-feet-2-inches tall, with a thin build and wearing a black hooded sweatshirt, but none thought they would be able to identify him.

The victim said that in the end he lost only a small amount of cash. Police collected the lost shoe, described as a black men's slipper, as evidence.