Story Of Robbery At Sam's Beach Bar Unravels; 4 Arrested

HUDSON, FL -- The Pasco County Sheriff's detectives have concluded that this week's robbery of Sam's Beach Bar in Hudson was an inside job and have arrested four of six accused conspirators involved.

An employee at the beach bar at 6325 Clark St. arrived around 7:30 a.m. that Monday. He noticed a stranger in the parking lot but didn't think much of it at the time. He was performing his usual opening preparations at 8 a.m. when two men walked in, one carrying a gun and another a can of mace.

Before the employee could object to the intrusion, one of the men pistol whipped him on the right side of the head. He fell to the floor and the intruder proceeded to stomp on his head and then drag him into a walk-in cooler.

The 71-year-old manager was in the office with the door partly open when she heard yelling from the restaurant. She looked out and saw a stranger walking toward her. He sprayed her in the eyes with pepper spray, and she fell to the ground. The robber then picked her up by the arm and forced her into the cooler where she tripped over the inert body of her co-worker.

In the meantime, a third employee arrived. She noticed a blue SUV in the parking lot with two white men sitting inside but wasn't alarmed. She entered the establishment through the kitchen and began preparing food when she heard yelling. She went to investigate and saw her manager being pushed into the cooler by a stranger. As she ran to help her manager, another man stepped into her path and pointed a gun at her. He threatened to kill her if she didn't cooperate and ordered her into the cooler with the manager and other employee. She said she tried to lock the cooler door from the inside so the robbers couldn't get to them but one of the men caught her in the act and ordered her to sit down.

While the employees and manager were locked in the cooler, the robbers stole an undisclosed amount of money from the office along with the manager's purse and belongings. They then fled to the getaway vehicle in the parking lot.

The employees were locked in the cooler for only a few minutes when a fourth employee arrived and released them. The bar was shut down for the day to allow detectives to gather evidence (see related story).

Shortly after the robbery, detectives began receiving tips that led to another employee, Scott Bamberger, was involved in the robbery. Detectives said Bamberger conspired with Steven Snow and his nephews,Terrance Snow and Austin Hurtt, and two other people, to rob the restaurant.

Shortly after the robbery, detectives released surveillance photos of the beach bar parking lot where a blue Chevy Trailblazer was parked. A tipster identified the SUV as matching one owned by Steven Snow's mother.

Another tipster reported being in a hotel room with Snow during the early hours of Tuesday morning. She said Snow told her he and some cohorts stole a large amount of money from Sam's Beach Bar and locked the employees in a walk-in cooler.

When detectives interviewed Steven Snow, they say he admitted that Bamberger provided a drawing of the restaurant's layout and photos of the office and office safe. He admitted that he and Hurtt committed the robbery while Terrance Snow acted as the getaway driver, a job for which he received $50.

In all, six people were involved in planning the robbery. Two are still at large.

Scott Roy Bamberger, 46, of Port Richey was arrested at the beach bar on June 6 and charged with robbery with a firearm.

Terrance Paul Snow, 18, was arrested at his home on Skyland Drive in Holiday on June 7 and charged with robbery with a firearm.

Austin Michael Hurtt, 24, was arrested at his home on MacArthur Court in New Port Richey on June 7 and charged with robbery with a firearm, aggravated assault, aggravated battery with a deadly weapon and kidnapping.

And Steven David Snow, 38, of Little Road in New Port Richey was arrested June 6 and charged with robbery with a firearm, battery on a person over 65 years old and kidnapping.

In court Friday, Bamberger's bond was set at $50,000; Hurtt's bond was set at $500,000; and the Snows each received bonds of $150,000.