DELAND -- Four masked men armed with guns smashed their way into the Howard Johnson Inn east of DeLand early this morning, pistol-whipped the clerk and made off with the money from the hotel's cash register, Volusia County Sheriff's spokesman Gary Davidson said.
The attack resulted in lacerations to his face and head of the 52-year-old male clerk who thrown to the ground and pistol-whipped on the back of the head. The clerk was transported by EVAC ambulance to Florida Hospital DeLand for treatment of his injuries, Davidson said.
The robbery was called in to the Sheriff's Office at 2:54 a.m. by a hotel guest who heard the commotion and dialed 911. The hotel clerk told responding deputies that four armed men all dressed in black smashed out the glass to the front door of the hotel on East New York Avenue, came through the door to the hotel lobby and then violently attacked the
victim.
The four then swiped an undisclosed amount of cash and ran out the door. Several patrol deputies along with a K-9 unit and a Sheriff's Office helicopter responded to the scene, but were unable to locate the suspects, the Sheriff's spokesman said.
Anyone with information about the robbery is asked to call Sheriff's Investigator Todd Raible at (386) 943-7866 or Crime Stoppers of Northeast Florida, toll-free, at (888) 277-TIPS.
Tipsters can also provide information by texting "TIP231 plus the message" to CRIMES. Anyone who provides information to Crime Stoppers will remain anonymous and can qualify for a reward of up to $1,000.