Pittsburg man arrested after confessing to robbing Dollar General

PITTSBURG, Kan. -- A Pittsburg man was arrested Monday after police say he robbed a Dollar General store at gunpoint and later confessed to the crime.

According to the Pittsburg Police Department, officers were dispatched at about 8:42 a.m. Monday to the Dollar General at 2004 S. Rouse St. after an employee reported that a masked man entered the store, displayed what appeared to be a handgun and demanded money from the cash register.

Police said the suspect took cash from the employee, left the store and drove south on Rouse Street in a silver-colored SUV.

Officers and detectives from the Pittsburg Police Department, assisted by the Crawford County Sheriff's Office, quickly responded to the area and located discarded clothing and a black-colored handgun near the store along East 530th Avenue. Investigators later determined the weapon was a BB-style handgun designed to resemble a real firearm.

Using city public safety cameras and Flock Safety license plate reader technology, investigators identified the suspect vehicle as a silver Chevrolet Suburban registered to 57-year-old Mitchell Thomas of Pittsburg.

Authorities said Thomas matched physical descriptions gathered during the investigation. Officers then went to an address associated with Thomas at about 10 a.m., where they located the suspect vehicle parked in a garage.

Police said Thomas was questioned at the residence and confessed to committing the robbery. Investigators also recovered the stolen money from the home.

Thomas was arrested and booked into the Crawford County Sheriff's Office on suspicion of aggravated robbery and aggravated assault, both felonies.

He is being held without bond in the Crawford County Jail.

The investigation remains ongoing.