A Massachusetts clerk shot and wounded a suspect who was threatening a customer at knife point, according to investigators.
Worcester police said officers responded to the No Name Grocery store at 49 Vernon St. Saturday night for a report of an individual who had been shot, and found paramedics at the scene treating a 26-year-old man who had been shot three times.
Officers then learned that the man who had been injured, identified as Juan Ahorrio of Worcester, had entered the store with a knife. He allegedly moved behind one of two female customers, grabbed her and then held the knife to her throat.
The clerk, whose name has not been released, feared for the customer's safety and grabbed his personal firearm, which resulted in the customer being threatened at knife point to fall to the ground, and the clerk fired three rounds at the suspect, according to investigators.
The suspect dropped the knife after being hit, and then ran out of the store, with the clerk ultimately catching up to him and ordering him to the ground.
Paramedics arrived and then began to treat Ahorrio as officers arrived at the scene.
One man told NBC10 Boston he waved down paramedics as they arrived in an ambulance.
U.S. & World
"Just so happened that an ambulance was coming down, so I waved him down, and I'm like, 'Listen, this kid just got shot four times and he's on the sidewalk now,'" Armando Gonzalez said.
Neighbor Maria Hernandez witnessed the shooting's aftermath.
"I heard people yelling outside, then I heard someone whining in pain," she said. "Then I saw someone lying on the floor and the ambulance just pulled out of nowhere down the street."
Ahorrio was booked at a local hospital, and will be arraigned on multiple charges, including assault and battery with a dangerous weapon and armed assault with the intent to rob, when he's released. It's unclear what his current condition is or if he has an attorney.
The investigation is ongoing.
