Police say a robber entered the office of a Grand Forks taxi company early Wednesday and sprayed a dispatcher in the eyes with what may have been pepper spray.
"The thing that's unusual here is he came right in and sprayed her first and then demanded money," Lt. Rahn Farder said.
Officers responded to Red, White and Blue Taxi, at 2212 Library Circle, just after 2 a.m. Wednesday.
Farder said the employee, Kathryn Geatz of Grand Forks, was still feeling the effects of the spray when police arrived. An officer helped Geatz flush the orange-colored substance from her eyes, and Altru paramedics treated her at the scene.
Mike Brosius, a manager at Red, White and Blue, said the man came in through an unlocked door when Geatz was working alone. Farder said the man was probably trying to rob the business, but he got away with only Geatz's pink purse and some prescription drugs.
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The purse and its contents were valued at $100, and the cost of the prescription drugs was estimated at $200, according to a police report.
Geatz, 26, described the suspect as a white man with a thin build, standing 5-foot-10. She told police he wore black sunglasses and dark clothing with a black-and-white bandana covering the lower half of his face. He was last seen heading west.
Brosius said the company plans to keep the doors locked and have dispatchers work in pairs in the future.
Police ask that anyone who finds a pink purse in the area or has information concerning this incident call (701) 787-8000.
