NEWPORT — Three men who reportedly robbed the Newport Irving retail store early Thursday and allegedly assaulted the store manager who attempted to stop their getaway were still at large late Thursday.

Newport Police Chief Jim Ricker said that three men entered the Main Way store, adjacent to the Irving restaurant and gas station at the Triangle intersection on Route 100 about 1:20 a.m.

He said two of the men picked up a case of beer each while the third took two cartons of cigarettes. As the men approached the door, they were asked by the clerk if they were going to pay for the items and Ricker said they answered no.

The men fled with the beer and cigarettes to a nearby car dealership parking lot, where they had parked their car. Ricker said they were approached by the manager, who then was assaulted by the men. He was struck about the head and face, said Ricker.

The car sped away, said Ricker, and Newport Officer Douglas Franklin began pursuing it on Main Street. Penobscot County Deputy Sgt. Ronald Green joined the chase on Route 2 in East Newport. The car was pursued to the junction of Routes 2 and 69 in Carmel, when the chase was called off because of dangerous road conditions.

Ricker said the men were described as all between 18 and 25 years old. One man was 6 feet 1 inch tall, weighing 180 pounds, with a black crewcut hairstyle. The second man was 5 feet 10 inches tall, weighing 180 pounds, with a shaved head. The third man was 5 feet 8 inches tall, weighing 200 pounds with dark brown hair.

Anyone with information about the trio is asked to call the Newport Police Department at 368-4400.