Pizza robbers busted at their own game when police get creative

ELYRIA, Ohio - At least a half dozen delivery drivers have been robbed in Elyria recently, but an Elyria officer used a unique strategy to crack the case.

Thursday, a Marco's Pizza worker took a call from a man who wanted a pizza delivered to a house in Elyria. The worker thought the call was strange and did not send a delivery person.

On Saturday night, the same worker recognized the voice, when the man called back asking for a pizza to be delivered.

The manager called Elyria police, who put in their own order, asking Marco's to deliver a Marco's hat, sign and pizza box. An officer dressed as a delivery person and hid his gun in a pizza box, by cutting a hole in the bottom of the empty pizza box . He then took that empty box to what turned out to be a vacant house.

"When the officer arrived, they (the suspects) told him to go inside and since he didn't want to be ambushed he didn't go inside,” said Elyria police Lt. Andy Eichenlaub.

Police surrounded the house and threatened to send in a police K-9. Two suspects ran, but were arrested. A third suspect was hiding under a blanket, holding a sawed-off shotgun.

The suspects were 15 and 16 years old.