ST. LOUIS, MISSOURI — After having a gun drawn on her at point blank range, a neighborhood store clerk bravely retrieved her own gun to stop the armed robber from further assaulting her husband. Recounting the tale for KSDK 5, the part owner of an Asian grocery store had to defend the life of herself and her husband after an armed robber with no regard for either of their lives attempted to use his illegally obtained handgun to potentially kill both of them before fleeing.
via KSDK 5
“He walked in, and he wanted a 20 cent candy. I put right here, and he put gun on me. He point at me. After that he turn gun to my husband,” said the store clerk.
Video surveillance from the incident shows the woman backing up as the armed robber draws down on her. When he turned his attention towards her husband, she fearlessly drew down to defend their lives. From the video footage, bullets from the armed robber strike all around her but thankfully never make their mark.
“I stand right here. He shoot one, two, three, four over there. I run follow him to go outside. I only try to protect myself,” recounted the store clerk. “I don’t know how to [be] scared.”
The woman didn’t have the opportunity to return fire because she feared she would hit her husband in the close quarters fight. She did, however, chase the suspect out of the store with gun-in-hand. The encounter has left many shaken, including those who frequent their corner store.
Area residents are shocked at the incident, telling KSDK news that the couple provide a much needed service for their community by running their business in that neighborhood.
“Sometimes I cry at home, I say, ‘Why they have to do it with us. I don’t make too much money’. Business is slow,” said the store clerk.
Thankfully, the husband only received superficial wounds related to minor blunt force trauma as the armed robber made his escape. Neither were struck by bullets despite the robber discharging four or five rounds during the crime. The robber escaped and police are at a loss to identify the thug.
Insofar as returning fire is concerned, it’s pretty clear that this woman responded with absolute meticulousness to ensure her husband was not hurt. That takes real courage and a certain amount of fear knowing you’re heading into a potential gunfight and your assailant has no problems using your spouse as a collateral human shield.
We always hope for that nice clean and clear shot in an actual gunfight but as cases like this demonstrate, a concealed carrier can rarely expect such a privilege. We have more to lose by opening fire indiscriminately than the bad guy does — which puts us at a severe disadvantage. It’s our sincere hope that this couple stays strong and continue to do the good work that needs to be done.
