Ottawa police are searching for four male suspects and canvassing a neighbourhood in Britannia for evidence Friday after a west-end convenience store was robbed for the fifth time in four weeks.

Police say a man entered Food Frenz convenience store on Carling Avenue at about 4:15 a.m. demanding cash.

"He came in and when he walked in, he had a gun. And he said: 'If you call the police, I'll kill you,'" store owner Alice Jadon told CTV Ottawa on Friday.

She says although a police cruiser was in the parking lot when the robbery occurred, the suspect got away with an undisclosed amount of money.

According to Jadon, police saw the assailant and chased him on foot for a short distance before he was able to escape.

Investigators won't confirm if the store was under police surveillance at the time of the robbery.

Police say they've already recovered some evidence from the crime, including a replica handgun. Investigators have also confirmed the same person is responsible for at least two of the store's robberies, possibly more.

"We have reason to believe this person fled into the Richie Street area and may reside in that immediate area," said Ottawa Police Staff Sgt. Don Sweet.

Police say the suspect is described as black, in his mid-20s, six feet to six foot two inches tall, with a slim build. He was wearing a dark green or black winter jacket with the hood up, a black or light blue bandana covering his face, dark blue jeans, and light grey or white gloves with horizontal stripes.

Police also released three other sketches for men wanting in connection with robberies at Food Frenz on Feb. 7, Feb. 15, Feb 19, and Feb. 28.

The second man was black, 24 to 26 years old, five foot nine, 150 pounds, with short curly black hair. He was wearing a grey waist-length puffy jacket and a white hooded jacket.

The third suspect is described as black, five foot six, with a medium build. He was wearing a black puffy jacket and a bandana covering his face.

The final suspect is described as black, five foot eight, with a medium build. He covered his face with a black bandana and wore a black jacket with white stripes, white gloves, and white running shoes.

Beefing up security

Meanwhile, Jadon says she's lost up to $13,000 because of the robberies and she's not sure what else she can do to stop them.

The store has recently been equipped with new surveillance cameras and a secure electronic door to help beef up its security.

The convenience store, which has operated in the Britannia community for 11 years, has already lost one employee who quit out of fear. Now, an employee who's been on the job for only two weeks has already been robbed twice.

Although Jadon recently told CTV Ottawa she was considering shutting down the store due to the recent rash of robberies, she now says she's not going to back down.

"It's no way to close the business. How many people are opened 24 hours, why I should close down?" she said.

Residents demand more police presence

Although some criminologists have speculated an increase in armed robberies is linked to a tough economy, residents living in Britannia say the neighbourhood has been plagued by crime for years and the situation is getting worse.

"You can't walk down from the apartment at 5:35 in the morning without getting robbed. It's getting bad," said Judy Belanger.

Some say gangs are also a problem in the area and are demanding more police presence.

"Something needs to be done because it's unfair for these people and it's unfair for all of us because we all pay taxes to live here," said area resident Pablo Canalei.

West-end gas station also robbed overnight

However, Food Frenz wasn't the only store robbed overnight. Ottawa police are also investigating an early morning robbery at an Esso gas station on the 3500 block of Strandherd Road.

Police say a man armed with a gun entered the store at about 3:30 a.m. demanding cash. He got away with an undisclosed amount of money.

The suspect is described as white, in his mid-20s, with a stocky build. He is between five foot six and five foot eight inches tall. Police say he was wearing a puffy green jacket at the time of the incident.

No injuries were reported in either robbery.

Anyone with information about the crimes is asked to contact Ottawa police immediately at 613-236-1222 ext. 2212.

With a report from CTV Ottawa's Catherine Lathem