California Concealed Carrier Stops Pair From Stabbing Security Guard In Parking Lot

LOOMIS, CALIFORNIA — An armed citizen stopped a potential life-threatening event from happening when he sprung into action as a security guard was being overpowered by a couple he had stopped for alleged shoplifting.

Brandon Smith, 25, and Elizabeth Almand, 23, were leaving a grocery store with some stolen merch when the guard approached them.

“When they left, (the guard) confronted them in the parking lot. There was an altercation where the suspect pulled a knife out,” Lt. Andrew Scott said.

Smith then tried to stab the security guard, Scott said.

“The altercation escalated at that point and the victim was able to disarm the (Smith) and they began wrestling on the ground,” Scott said.

The knife fell to the ground, feet away from them, near where Almand was standing nearby.

“The male suspect told the female suspect to stab the victim,” Scott said. “She walked over and picked up the knife and was moving toward the victim.”

via kcra.com

That’s when a good guy with a gun drew on Almand and said “DROP IT!”

Almand, looking down the barrel of a gun, made the wise decision to do as she was told.

The licensed concealed carrier then held the pair at gunpoint until police arrived to arrest them.

Smith was booked on charges of robbery, assault with a deadly weapon and conspiracy; Almand was booked on charges of robbery and conspiracy, the Sheriff’s Office said.

In a state where it’s difficult to obtain a permit to carry a firearm, it’s refreshing to see an armed citizen in a story such as this. If he had not been in the right place at the right time, the security guard could have very well met his end at the hands of these two criminals.

Let’s hope that these two can one day find a better route to take in life, but even if they do, we all still need to be ready and prepared for the ones who decide to continue their life of crime.