Five suspects were arrested Tuesday evening “in a high-risk take down” after an armed robbery two hours earlier at a downtown business, police say.

According to Whitehorse RCMP, two males entered a business on Elliott Street at about 5 p.m. and, wielding a machete and a baton, demanded money and the location of a safe.

By the time officers arrived on scene, the suspects had fled with an undisclosed amount of cash.

The store clerk wasn’t injured.

Employees at other businesses in the area told the Star the incident happened at Kustom Phone Repairs, which is run out of the Inukshuk Planning and Development building between Second and Third avenues.

At about 7 p.m., Whitehorse RCMP, the Emergency Response Team and Police Dog Services stopped and surrounded a vehicle at Second Avenue and Hanson Street.

“The five occupants were taken into custody without incident in what would be deemed a high-risk take down,” police said in a news release late last night.

Items seized from the vehicle were consistent with those used during the robbery.

Police would not provide any further details this morning.

Andrea Reti, owner of the Pickapeppa restaurant on Second Avenue, said she didn’t see much of the arrests because she was in the kitchen cooking.

“All I saw was flashing lights and a bunch of police officers,” Reti told the Star this morning.

But some diners watched from the restaurant window.

One of her employees saw the emergency response team and “some guys lying on the ground,” she said.

“Whitehorse detachment continues to work with witnesses to piece together the details of the crime,” police say.

A staff member at Kustom Phone Repairs declined to comment this morning.

The store is closed for the day, according to a sign posted on the front door.

The suspects are expected to appear in court this afternoon.

Anyone with information about what happened is asked to contact police at 667-5551.