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Man dropping off Salvation Army donations robbed at knifepoint

MATTHEWS, N.C. — Police in Matthews are investigating a bizarre crime after a man said he was robbed of his Salvation Army donations at knifepoint.

Around 7:30 p.m. on Sunday, the victim called police and said he was at the Salvation Army on East Independence Boulevard. He said he had just pulled up to drop off donations when a man and a woman approached him.

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The man then pulled out a knife and both suspects stole bags of tools from the back of the victim's truck before driving away, according to police.

Nobody was at the store at the time but surveillance cameras captured images of the pair.

The thieves were described as a black man, roughly 5 feet, 10 inches tall and 170 pounds with short black hair, and a white woman about 5 feet, 5 inches tall with short, blond hair.

They were last seen in either a gray or tan late 1990s Ford Windstar van with a temporary tag with the words "Georgetown Auto" on it.

"That's concerning to us that someone is willing to go to that level of seriousness to take those items," police said. "If they're going steal, that's one thing, but if you're showing a deadly weapon and threatening, that's a whole different story."

No one was injured in the armed robbery.

Anyone with information about who the thieves are is asked to call Detective Danielle Helms at 704-847-5555.