New York robber wanted $4, and not a penny more

From Chron -

Aug. 28, 2007, 8:15PM, GREENBURGH, N.Y. — A knife-wielding robber, James Mitchell, 48, needed only $4, so he refused to take a $10 bill from his victim and waited while the man made change at a pizza parlor. He then took the $4 and ran off, only to be captured a few blocks away.

Police Capt. Joseph DeCarlo said it "really is an odd case, but it is a robbery." The confrontation began over an artificial rose that the 18-year-old victim had just bought.

"He came out of the store and was approached by the suspect, who said, 'Give me the rose,'" DeCarlo said. "The kid told him, 'Go in there and get one.' But the suspect says, 'I want that one, and your money, too,' and pulls out a knife.

When the teen said all he had was $10, the suspect said he wanted only $4. "He tells the kid to go into the pizza parlor and get change," DeCarlo said. "Then the kid comes out, he takes his $4 and he leaves."

The teenager and his mother, who was across the street, called police and led officers to Mitchell, DeCarlo said. He couldn't say why Mitchell wanted only $4.