http://www.fortwayne.com/mld/fortwayne/news/local/6629317.htm
Posted on Wed, Aug. 27, 2003
Robber was shot after firing first
Witness recounts liquor store holdup
By Carin Chappelow
The Journal Gazette
A liquor store employee who was not scheduled to work shot and killed a
would-be robber late Monday after the robber first fired a rifle, a
store employee who witnessed the shooting said.
Details of the holdup and shooting at Cap n' Cork remained sketchy
Tuesday, but Fort Wayne police confirmed it was an employee who shot the
robber, who died at a local hospital. Police recovered at least one
weapon from the store at 1031 Broadway, but had not confirmed how many
shots were fired or whether more than one weapon was discharged, said
officer Robin Thompson, department spokeswoman.
A store employee who was working Monday night said the robber fired a
rifle into the air and then the clerk fired back, using his own weapon.
The employee, who declined to be identified because of safety concerns,
said the clerk who shot the robber wasn't even supposed to be working
Monday. He came in to cover for someone else and the employee said he
credits the man for saving the lives of everyone inside the store.
Authorities did not release the identity of the clerk and had not been
been able to identify the robber as of Tuesday evening, Thompson said.
An autopsy was conducted on the man, but the Allen County Coroner's
Office did not release details Tuesday on the manner or cause of death.
A weapon was found near the man who was shot, but police could not
confirm whether he had been armed with it, Thompson said. The Fort Wayne
detective bureau declined to release additional details, citing the
ongoing investigation, but detectives were looking into whether the
employee had a personal gun permit, Thompson said.
The Cap n' Cork employee who witnessed the shooting said the clerk
carried a weapon for protection because he rode his bike to and from
work. He said the clerk was emotionally shaken and did not work Tuesday.
A second would-be robber escaped from the business after the shooting.
That man had not been found as of Tuesday evening, police said.
After detectives receive autopsy results and conclude their
investigation, the case will be presented to the Allen County
Prosecutor's Office, which will determine whether the shooting was
justifiable or whether charges should be filed, Thompson said.
Earlier this year, the prosecutor's office declined to file charges in a
robbery-shooting at a convenience store last November.
Patrick E. Byrd Jr., 26, was shot multiple times after he entered
Sunoco, 5133 Coldwater Road, pointed a gun at an employee and demanded
money, police said. Employee John W. Washington III, 27, pulled his own
gun and fired several shots. He then followed Byrd out the door and
fired more shots, police said. Byrd, who did not fire his weapon, died
at a local hospital.
The prosecutor's office ruled the shooting was justifiable because it
was in self-defense.
If the death of Monday's robber is declared a homicide, it will be Allen
County's 16th in 2003. All have occurred within Fort Wayne city limits.
Posted on Wed, Aug. 27, 2003
Robber was shot after firing first
Witness recounts liquor store holdup
By Carin Chappelow
The Journal Gazette
A liquor store employee who was not scheduled to work shot and killed a
would-be robber late Monday after the robber first fired a rifle, a
store employee who witnessed the shooting said.
Details of the holdup and shooting at Cap n' Cork remained sketchy
Tuesday, but Fort Wayne police confirmed it was an employee who shot the
robber, who died at a local hospital. Police recovered at least one
weapon from the store at 1031 Broadway, but had not confirmed how many
shots were fired or whether more than one weapon was discharged, said
officer Robin Thompson, department spokeswoman.
A store employee who was working Monday night said the robber fired a
rifle into the air and then the clerk fired back, using his own weapon.
The employee, who declined to be identified because of safety concerns,
said the clerk who shot the robber wasn't even supposed to be working
Monday. He came in to cover for someone else and the employee said he
credits the man for saving the lives of everyone inside the store.
Authorities did not release the identity of the clerk and had not been
been able to identify the robber as of Tuesday evening, Thompson said.
An autopsy was conducted on the man, but the Allen County Coroner's
Office did not release details Tuesday on the manner or cause of death.
A weapon was found near the man who was shot, but police could not
confirm whether he had been armed with it, Thompson said. The Fort Wayne
detective bureau declined to release additional details, citing the
ongoing investigation, but detectives were looking into whether the
employee had a personal gun permit, Thompson said.
The Cap n' Cork employee who witnessed the shooting said the clerk
carried a weapon for protection because he rode his bike to and from
work. He said the clerk was emotionally shaken and did not work Tuesday.
A second would-be robber escaped from the business after the shooting.
That man had not been found as of Tuesday evening, police said.
After detectives receive autopsy results and conclude their
investigation, the case will be presented to the Allen County
Prosecutor's Office, which will determine whether the shooting was
justifiable or whether charges should be filed, Thompson said.
Earlier this year, the prosecutor's office declined to file charges in a
robbery-shooting at a convenience store last November.
Patrick E. Byrd Jr., 26, was shot multiple times after he entered
Sunoco, 5133 Coldwater Road, pointed a gun at an employee and demanded
money, police said. Employee John W. Washington III, 27, pulled his own
gun and fired several shots. He then followed Byrd out the door and
fired more shots, police said. Byrd, who did not fire his weapon, died
at a local hospital.
The prosecutor's office ruled the shooting was justifiable because it
was in self-defense.
If the death of Monday's robber is declared a homicide, it will be Allen
County's 16th in 2003. All have occurred within Fort Wayne city limits.
