Shake Shack employee arrested for alleged armed robbery of his own restaurant

Keondre Simmons, 33, has been arrested after allegedly staging an armed robbery at a Shake Shack in Scottsdale, Arizona, where he was employed. The incident occurred on August 3, when Simmons reportedly entered the restaurant through a rear delivery door wearing a mask and wielding a semi-automatic handgun.

According to investigators, Simmons forced an employee into a walk-in cooler at gunpoint and ordered the store manager to hand over approximately $2,800 from the restaurant’s safe. He is also accused of locking two employees inside the cooler and forcing them to kneel while holding them at gunpoint. During the robbery, he allegedly seized employees' cellphones and destroyed them in a sink filled with water.

Victims identified the suspect based on his voice, physical build, and specific knowledge of the restaurant's layout, including the location of cleaning supplies and the walk-in cooler latch. Simmons was arrested in the restaurant parking lot on August 5 when he returned for his scheduled shift. Authorities recovered the firearm and the stolen cash during a search of his residence. He faces charges of armed robbery with a deadly weapon, two counts of aggravated assault, and two counts of kidnapping.