An employee at the Howard Johnson at 222 E. Diamond Drive was struck while on duty in a robbery on Saturday morning.

At 12:45 AM, a white male requested a room at the hotel, and when he was unable to provide photo I.D., the man was turned down. The man left, and the employee returned to perform maintenance responsibilities.

A short time later, the man came back to the hotel, struck the employee in the face which knocked him to the ground, ran behind the desk and emptied the cash register. He fled on foot eastbound where he met up with a female wearing a white coat and white stocking cap.

The employee sustained a bruise on his face, but did not require medical attention

The suspect was described as a 5’8 white male with little facial hair and a medium build, wearing a black jacket with “ATLANTA” written in all capital letters on the back.