Goodwill Armed Robbery Suspect Arrested

MARIETTA, GA -- Police in neighboring Cobb County have apprehended the man accused of pepper spraying an employee at a Goodwill store before robbing the business, a similar method of attack police say was used in an incident reported last week in Woodstock.

Bradley John Tahlser was arrested Friday after an armed robbery was reported at a Goodwill store in East Cobb.

The Cobb County Police Department was dispatched to the call around 3:15 p.m. May 19 at 2401 Shallowford Road in Marietta. According to investigators a male subject entered the store and approached a female employee while she was handling the transaction of another customer.

"When the employee opened the cash register, she was sprayed in the face by the suspect with what was believed to be pepper spray," Cobb police said. "As the victim was reacting to being sprayed, the suspect took the till from the cash register and fled out the front door."

Fortunately, Cobb officers were in the process of establishing a perimeter around the business, so when the suspect exited the store, he was apprehended without incident. The employee was treated at the scene.

Tahlser, 41, of Marietta has been charged with armed robbery and aggravated assault. Police also believe he's a suspect in other commercial armed robberies in Marietta, Woodstock and Douglasville.

The case in Woodstock bears a striking resemblance to what took place during the East Cobb incident, according to information provided by Woodstock police.

Around 1:30 p.m. May 13, a male subject entered the Goodwill store at 9425 Highway 92 and spent a brief time surveying the store clerk's register.

The male approached the clerk and pepper sprayed the woman in the face, Woodstock police previously told Patch. He then grabbed the cash drawer and fled the store with an undisclosed amount of cash.

Photo: Bradley John Tahlser. Credit: Cobb County Sheriff's Office