The assistant was alone Monday afternoon in the Broadway dental office when the robber -- wearing a hoodie, ski mask and gloves -- "entered the office, told her he had a gun and threatened to shoot her if she didn't give him money," Police Chief Michael Foligno told Daily Voice.
When she said there was none in the office, he struggled with the worker before grabbing her cellphone and wallet, Foligno said. Then he took off.
The dental assistant "chased him down the hallway, fought with him and got back her property," the chief said.
The bandit then ran down a staircase, got into a Honda SUV that he had parked outside and sped off -- hitting a vehicle that just entered the lot and driving over the foot of a pedestrian, causing a minor injury, Foligno said.
He then sped off on Route 4 into Paterson, the chief said.
Police who issued an alert discovered that the SUV had been stolen about a half-hour before the holdup, he said.
Officers found a flashlight at the dental office that they sent to the Bergen County Sheriff's Bureau of Criminal Identification to be processed for fingerprints, Foligno said.
They also interviewed witnesses and reviewed surveillance video, he said.
The dental assistant and the pedestrian declined medical attention.
Click here to follow Daily Voice Saddle Brook-Elmwood Park and receive free news updates.