Cops: Man charged in Westbury nursery robbery

A homeless man who tried to rob a Westbury nursery Tuesday was chased by workers and captured by officers a short time later, Nassau police said.

Alex Smith, 22, showed a gun about 1:15 p.m. to the cashier at Zainos Nursery on Brush Hollow Road, and after she screamed, he ran away without taking any money, robbery detectives said.

Employees chased him, and Smith was arrested on Amber Court near Cedar Road, several blocks from the nursery, police said.

After an investigation, detectives concluded Smith was also responsible for two Hicksville robberies, one at a Metro PCS store on Sept. 2 and the other at a Citgo gas station on Saturday, police said.

Smith was charged with two counts of first-degree robbery, two counts of second-degree robbery, first-degree attempted robbery and two unrelated warrant charges for forgery.

He is scheduled to be arraigned Wednesday at First District Court in Hempstead.