CROWN POINT | James Plante Jr. was charged Monday after he tried to rob a Hammond bar using a cheese grater underneath his shirt and successfully robbing a nearby gas station a couple minutes later, Lake Criminal Court records allege.
The 39-year-old man faces felony counts of robbery and attempted robbery for the Sunday incidents.
Police said Plante, address unknown, demanded money about 1:30 a.m. from the bartender of Hoosier Buddy Tavern, 839 169th St., in Hammond, threatening to shoot the bartender and a patron if the victim failed to comply.
The patron realized Plante didn't have a gun and used a bar stool to push him out of the bar, court records state. Plante fled, dropping a cheese grater on the ground, court records allege.
A couple of minutes later, Plante showed up at a Speedway gas station in the 6800 block of Calumet Avenue, records state. He told the attendant he had a gun, so she turned over all of the money from the register, court records state.
Plante confessed his involvement to Hammond police, court records state.
