Strathmore robbery: Man wields knife in Napier St post office before escaping on e-scooter

Police continue to hunt for a masked man who held up a post office with a knife in what they have described as a “confronting and distressing” ordeal for customers and staff.

A knife-wielding thief is still on the run more than two weeks after robbing a Strathmore post office and threatening workers inside before fleeing on an electric scooter.

The man, wearing a black helmet, sunglasses and a scarf that hid his face during the attack, demanded staff hand over cash while pointing a knife at them on March 31.

A witness captured the man on camera during the robbery about 10.20am before he fled the Napier St post office on an electric scooter.

In CCTV footage filmed inside the post office, the offender can be seen shaking his backpack as he appears to demand a female staff member fill it with cash.

He then shakes a knife at her while she and another co-worker hand over bank notes from the cash register behind a counter.

The man can then be seen wearing a black backpack over his shoulders and wearing a grey hoodie while on Pascoe Vale Rd in Pascoe Vale.

Police hope this man can help with their inquiries. Picture: Victoria Police

The e-scooter is believed to be a Dualtron Eagle with its front missing. Picture: Victoria Police

On Tuesday, detective Insp Mick Daly from the Armed Crime Squad said the robbery was “very confronting and distressing” for those inside the post office.

“It’s a confronting situation, not only for the storekeepers, but also for the the customers at the time,” he said.

“It was 10.20 in the morning. People were just going about their day-to-day business and have been confronted by an armed offender with a knife.

“That would be very confronting and distressing.”

He said police hoped the distinctive scooter, which was missing its front mud-guard, would help locate the man.

“The offender is quite distinctive in appearance, as well as the scooter he was using at the time,” he said.

Detectives have not been able to find the knife used by the mystery attacker during the ordeal.

It is believed one of the staff members has been too scared to return to work following the incident, during which the man made off with about $1000 in cash.

Mr Daly said the thief had been seen in the area before he struck and investigators are expected to probe whether the robbery was planned.

“We don’t know if that was looking for the opportunity to commit the crime,” Mr Daly said.

It is not known whether the scooter was stolen.

Nobody was injured during the incident.