Authorities are investigating an early-morning robbery at a BP station on Sunrise Highway in Rockville Centre in which a longtime clerk suffered a facial laceration on September 10. The employee required about 14 stitches and was taken to a hospital, where he is expected to recover, according to News 12 Long Island.
According to police information reported by News 12 New York, the suspect entered the BP station, displayed a knife and took money from the business. Surveillance video supplied by owner Hitendra Shah appears to show an attack on the clerk before the suspect opened the register. Shah said the clerk did not resist: “My guy didn't say anything. He didn't try to play any smartness or anything.”
Owner Reacts to Attack on Longtime Employee
Shah said he was shaken by the attack on an employee who has worked at the station for a very long time. He told News 12 that he felt terrible about what happened but believed the injuries could have been more serious.
Eleanor Baxmeyer, a Lynbrook resident who told News 12 Long Island that she had planned to stop at the store shortly before 4 a.m. for food, described the employee as a familiar, gentle and consistently calm presence behind the counter.
Recommended Protections for Late-Night Retail Workers
For employees working alone or during late-night shifts, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration recommends that late-night retail employers establish a clear workplace-violence policy and ensure that all workers know it. OSHA also recommends that retailers' post-incident procedures include getting medical help for injured victims, notifying police and other authorities, informing management and securing the premises to protect evidence.
Legal Stakes if Suspect Is Caught
The attack elevates the case well beyond a simple theft. Under New York Penal Law § 160.15, forcibly stealing property while using or threatening a dangerous instrument like a knife constitutes Robbery in the First Degree, a Class B violent felony carrying a mandatory minimum of five years and up to 25 years in state prison, according to The Fast Law Firm, P.C. Separately, inflicting facial lacerations with a knife can trigger charges under New York Penal Law § 120.05 and § 120.10 for Second-Degree Assault or First-Degree Assault, the latter also a Class B violent felony punishable by up to 25 years, per Tilem & Associates, PC.
A Rare Jolt Along a Busy Commercial Corridor
The robbery struck a nerve partly because of where — and in what kind of place — it happened. Nassau County was ranked the safest county in the United States in the 2024 U.S. News & World Report Healthiest Communities public safety evaluation, which cited crime, injury and public-safety-capacity metrics, according to Patch. Sunrise Highway, or NYS Route 27, is a heavily traveled, multi-lane commercial artery lined with 24-hour service stations and retail hubs connecting Nassau and Suffolk communities, per JTNY, which makes the BP station a highly visible, round-the-clock target along a corridor most Long Islanders pass through daily.
It would not be the first gas station holdup along that stretch. In April 2022, an armed robbery took place at a BP station at 265 Sunrise Highway in neighboring Lynbrook, just west of Rockville Centre, where a masked suspect brandished a pistol and made off with cash and $6,000 worth of lottery tickets, according to Herald Community Newspapers. More recently, Nassau County law enforcement investigated a multi-town commercial robbery spree in February 2026 that included an armed robbery at a 7-Eleven on Merrick Road in Rockville Centre, according to a Facebook post from Lindenhurst Patch.
Earlier Armed Gas-Station Robbery in Yaphank
A separate January 24, 2025, robbery at a Shell station in Yaphank involved two masked men, one of whom pointed a loaded firearm at the clerk while register cash was taken, according to TBR News Media. Unlike the Rockville Centre case, that prosecution resulted in arrests and convictions; Marion Maupin was sentenced to 20 years to life.
Local Police Coordinate With County Detectives
The Incorporated Village of Rockville Centre operates its own independent, state-accredited police department with 58 sworn officers, according to the Rockville Centre Police Department. The department maintains full accreditation through the New York State Division of Criminal Justice Services by fulfilling 110 training standards, and it reports that overall village crime rates have historically remained low.
Anyone with information about the suspect is urged to contact investigators. Nassau County Crime Stoppers offers anonymous cash rewards of up to $5,000 for tips that lead to the arrest and indictment of suspects involved in violent felonies such as armed commercial robberies, according to Nassau County Crime Stoppers. As of now, the suspect remains at large and police have not indicated whether they are examining possible connections to other recent robberies along the Sunrise Highway corridor.
