I believe it’s Occam’s Razor which says, “the simplest solution is usually the right one.” I never thought that would apply to robbery however, and after posting story after story about how clerks and robbers bungle robberies in various ways, I never really thought of this.

An attempted robbery of Hammer Pharmacy in Des Moines failed Tuesday when a clerk simply walked away.

Police said the man was after hydromorphone, a derivative of morphine. He passed a note to a clerk while he was talking on a cell phone. The note said, “Put all the hydromorphone in a bag. I have two friends waiting outside with weapons.”

As the clerk read the note, police said, the robber asked, “Is this a problem?” The clerk turned toward a back hallway and walked away. When he realized the clerk was not getting the drugs the robber ran out the door.

Another employee triggered a silent alarm. There were no arrests.

I mean, they didn’t bash him over the head with a case of beer or something humorous, but hey, they didn’t get shot either. Although he probably didn’t have a gun, or any friends outside.