AUBURN — A Livermore Falls man appeared in Androscoggin County Court on Friday and denied robbing Lewiston Variety store in April.

Ronald Austin, 28, of 22 Gagnon St. was indicted by an Androscoggin County grand jury earlier this week on a count of Class A robbery  involving the store at at 145 College St. He also was charged with theft by unauthorized taking, a Class C felony. The robbery charge is punishable by up to 30 years in prison; the theft charge, five years.

He was held without bail.

Police said in court papers that Austin went into the store at night, threatened the clerk with a gun and demanded money. He fled after the clerk handed him cash from the register, the clerk told police.

According to a police affidavit, Austin entered the store dressed in a hooded, charcoal-gray sweatshirt, jeans and white Nike sneakers. He grabbed a drink from one of the store’s aisles and put it on the checkout counter. He walked out of the store, then re-entered a couple of minutes later, police said, based on store surveillance-video footage. Police later took the drink Austin handled for DNA and fingerprint evidence.

Police said Austin waited until the clerk was waiting on another customer to move to the end of the checkout counter, which was near the store’s front door. He pushed his hand forward in the pocket of his sweatshirt to suggest he was concealing something in it.

The affidavit said a police informant identified Austin from a still image from surveillance video of someone entering a building on Howe Street shortly before the robbery. Police said drug users were known to frequent an apartment at that address. Police knocked on door of that apartment and admitted by the tenant. A man fitting the description from the store’s video was wearing the same shoes from the tape, but different pants, police said. Austin denied any wrongdoing.

The apartment’s tenant told police that Austin had shown up with money and had swapped pants with another man shortly before police arrived, police said.

Following his arrest, he denied being at the store.

Police said the man Austin had changed pants with later told police that Austin told him he had just robbed someone and was seeking crack cocaine. The man told police Austin had asked to swap pants with him, which the man agreed to do.

Another witness from the apartment told police that Austin had a “stack of cash” with which to buy crack cocaine, according to the affidavit. She said Austin had been wearing a hoodie that fit the description from the store’s video when she saw Austin in the building’s hallway earlier. The sweatshirt apparently belonged to another person from the apartment.

[email protected]