Tacoma man turns himself in after convenience store robbery

A Tacoma man who allegedly held up a convenience store with a shotgun returned days later to confess and turn himself in, records show.

The 20-year-old man pleaded not guilty Monday to first-degree robbery and was ordered jailed in lieu of $40,000 bail.

He walked into the store in the 3900 block of East Portland Avenue on Feb. 2, pointed a shotgun at the clerk and demanded cash. Witnesses said he then ran off.

Police interviewed the clerk and witnesses and obtained surveillance footage from the store in hopes of identifying the armed robber.

On Saturday, a man came to the convenience store and confessed to the robbery. The store owner called police, and officers took him into custody.

The man directed police to cash and the barrel of the shotgun, which broke and fell in a wooded area as the robber ran from the scene.

He told police he held up the store so he could pay the water bill, police spokeswoman Loretta Cool said.

This story was originally published February 9, 2016 at 6:13 AM with the headline "Tacoma man turns himself in after convenience store robbery."