A 49-YEAR-OLD man who allegedly pulled a knife on an attendant at the Aldi supermarket has been refused bail and taken to Bloomfield hospital for a mental health assessment.
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Police allege the man cut two staff members during the attempted robbery on Saturday afternoon.
A witness who was standing in the checkout line said a man pushed past him and his young daughter and demanded the attendant handover money from the cash register.
“At first I thought he was just going ahead because he only had one item,” the man said.
“But then he demanded the money and pulled a knife.
“I have to say the staff are to be commended, they handled the situation well.”
He also said the man appeared to be disorientated.
“I thought he was either on drugs or it was alcohol,” the man said.
Police say the attendant, a 23-year-old man, attempted to disarm the offender and was assisted by another attendant, a 44-year-old woman.
Both staff members received cuts to their hands and were treated at the scene by paramedics before being transferred to Orange Health Service for treatment.
They were later discharged.
After grabbing some coins from the cash register, the man ran from the supermarket and across Peisley Street to the overhead bridge near Orange Railway Station where he was apprehended by police.
The man was charged with robbery armed with an offensive weapon causing wounding.
