PAUL SQUIRE PHOTO | The Riverhead CVS on Route 58 is open 24 hours.

Two men armed with a handgun stormed a 24-hour CVS store in Riverhead early Monday and demanded cash from employees before fleeing the scene, Riverhead Town police said.

The suspects, wearing masks, gloves and hooded sweatshirts, entered the Route 58 store just after 3:30 a.m. and forced an employee to open a store safe at gunpoint, police said.

The men then fled the area on foot in a westerly direction “with an unknown amount of money,” according to a police report.

Employees at the CVS declined to comment, forwarding any questions to a corporate office where a CVS spokesperson was not immediately available.

No injuries were reported.

Diane Zak, a longtime Calverton resident who was shopping at the CVS Monday, said she too had just been the victim of a recent crime. Her mailbox was targeted by vandals in a recent crime spree in the hamlet, she said.

“It’s everything that’s going in in the world today,” Ms. Zak said. “Everybody’s aggravated and … they’re resorting to drastic measures to get what they need. It’s a shame that people feel the need to resort to such acts.”

There needs to be more for people to do in town, she speculated.

Another CVS shopper, a Mastic man who works in Riverhead and gave his name as Ernest, said he’s been hearing about more incidents of armed robberies and other violent crimes in the area than he had in years past.

“You hear a lot more about it now,” he said, but added “cops can’t be everywhere.”

He thinks a poor economy has something to do with a perceived increase in crime, along with numbers that show fewer people believe in God. He said that when less people believe in a God, the ills of society grow worse.

“I hope they catch the guys because someone could have got hurt,” he said.

Anyone with information is asked to call Riverhead police detectives at (631) 727-4500, ext. 289.

psquire@timesreview.com