By Shavonne Walker

shavonne.walker@salisburypost.com

SALISBURY — Police are looking for three people they say walked into a West Innes Street ABC store and took an unknown amount of money from a back room.

The theft occurred Thursday afternoon but wasn’t discovered until nearly three hours later, police said.

Employees said store surveillance video shows that about 5 p.m., two men and a woman walked into the store at 1636 W. Innes St. in the Ketner Center during a busy time. The woman distracted an employee by asking about liquor she needed to buy for a party, police said. The employee showed the woman some alcohol in a back corner. One of the men, who police said was well-dressed, walked to a back room used by employees and opened a few drawers until he found a stack of money inside one.

The door to the back room was not locked, police Capt. Shelia Lingle said.

The man put the money in his pocket and checked a safe, but discovered that it was locked and left.

Lingle said the employees did not realize the money had been taken until they went to the back room for it. Employees reported the theft at 7:50 p.m.

A second employee was busy checking out customers at the register.

The woman is described as African-American with goldish-blond hair and wearing sunglasses. The man who went into the back room was also African-American and had short black hair with a distinct bald spot in the front. He wore a dark blue dress jacket, brown dress shoes and khaki pants, and he was in his 40s, about 6 feet tall and 170 pounds. The second man was African-American and wore a light blue shirt, dark blue belt with a large buckle and blue jeans, and he was bald.

Anyone with information is asked to contact the Salisbury Police Department at 704-638-5333 or Salisbury-Rowan Crime Stoppers at 866-639-5245.

Contact reporter Shavonne Walker at 704-797-4253.