Griswold ― The arrest warrant affidavit for a Waterbury man accused of attempting to rob a Jewett City package store while displaying a fake gun said the crime was thwarted when the clerk ran out the back door.

State police charged Charlie D. Snowfly, 42, on Thursday with illegal use of a facsimile firearm, first-degree threatening, second-degree attempted robbery and second-degree breach of peace.

The JC Spirits Shop clerk told police the man on Dec. 30, 2022 showed a gun with multiple colors on it tucked into his pants after telling her to give him her money. She said she told him “hold on” before going straight back to the cooler and out of the building.

Video footage showed the man walking a few steps in the direction of the departing clerk before turning to run out the door, according to the affidavit. Video from a nearby store caught him entering a Main Street apartment.

The warrant said state police on Jan. 5 visited the apartment, where the tenant brought Snowfly to the door. Police showed them a photograph of the man in the robbery but both of them at the time denied they knew the man.

State police got consent from the tenant for a search of the apartment, according to the affidavit. They found clothing matching that seen in the surveillance footage in plain view and a facsimile gun underneath a bathroom drawer after the tenant told them where it was.

Snowfly was arraigned Thursday at Norwich Superior Court.

e.regan@theday.com