Off-duty officer thwarts vet robbery

By Shannon McDonald

An off-duty police officer helped stopped an armed robbery yesterday on Bustleton Avenue.

Lt. Andrew Napoli was at the Radbill Animal Hospital on Bustleton Avenue between Somerton Avenue and Byberry Road with his family when a suspicious-looking man walked into the clinic and went directly to the treatment area.

The man proceded to demand money from the veterinarian and his technician. The technician pulled a gun on the theif, but he didn’t back down. Napoli, a 20-year veteran of the Marine Unit, stepped in when he heard the technician’s cries for help. He wrestled the gunman, 46-year-old David Minarczyk, to the waiting room floor until more help arrived.

Police say Minarczyk was wanted for three CVS robberies, and was trying to support a drug habit.

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