MEXICO – With the help of an alert witness, police were able to arrest a man they believe stole $180 from the Big Apple store early Friday morning.

Charles Cardignan, 29, of Winslow, was arrested at an Augusta apartment after a tip from a customer in the store provided police with a vehicle description and license plate number for the car Cardignan was riding in, Mexico police Sgt. Roy Hodsdon said Friday.

Cardignan robbed the store by holding one hand in his pocket – as if hiding a weapon – and demanding the clerk place the cash register tray on the counter, Hodsdon said. He then took all the bills from the tray and left.

Officer Dustin Broughton collected information on the suspect from the clerk and witness, and immediately issued a bulletin to other departments. That information tipped Augusta police that the distressed motorist they were helping was actually Cardignan’s getaway driver.

The driver informed police that two other people in the car had left before police arrived, Hodsdon said. Augusta police found Cardignan at a nearby Augusta apartment, based on information provided by the driver.

The driver also confirmed Cardignan had committed the robbery, and he matched the description given by the clerk and store witness. Cardignan also still had about $144 from the store, Hodsdon said.

Augusta police held Cardignan until late Friday when Hodsdon and Mexico police Chief James Theriault picked him up. Cardignan is incarcerated at Oxford County Jail on a robbery charge and a probation hold from Waterville, Hodsdon said.