Robbery Stopped by Armed Citizen

Highland Park, Michigan – An attempted robbery was stopped by a business owner with a concealed pistol license (CPL) early last Thursday morning.

According to Police, a 33-year-old armed man entered the Woodward Bistro just before closing time and pulled a rusty .357 revolver from his sock and walked into the managers office where the nights proceeds were being counted.

He ordered the owner to hand over the money earned that day. The owner complied but the suspect wasn’t satisfied. He then began to shake down everyone inside starting with the bartender, demanding she turn over her phone.

After the suspect moved on to begin robbing a customer, the owner of the restaurant saw he was distracted and used the opportunity to pull out the .40 caliber Glock he is licensed to carry concealed and opened fire. He emptied his magazine at the suspect, who police say did not have the chance to return fire and died at the scene.

The employee being robbed at the time of the shooting was grazed in the torso by a bullet from the restaurant owner’s gun. She was taken to the hospital with non-life-threatening injuries and released a short time later.

Highland Park Police report they are still in the midst of the investigation, but report surveillance video from the restaurant shows the suspect drinking at the establishments bar before the robbery occurred.

The business owner was questioned by detectives but released without charges since it is being treated as a self-defense shooting.

Defending a business is more difficult then defending your home given that you do not control who enters. But many of the same tactics used in home defense apply to defending a business.

Having a plan in place and informing your staff what to do in the event of a violent encounter can make all the difference. Read here for the Complete Home Defense – Tactics for Defending Your Castle for the latest tactics and techniques for home defense.