Another Stupid Criminal

Clumsy robber leaves gun on counter, clerk grabs it

Associated Press
Aug. 9, 2007 08:19 AM

ALBANY, N.Y. - A robber's clumsy pursuit of cash left him staring at the barrel of his own shotgun after he set it on the convenience store counter and the clerk snatched it up, officials said.

A surveillance video captured the man in sunglasses and a hooded sweat shirt, stuffing money from the register into his pockets and leaving his gun unattended early Tuesday.

That's when Quail Street News clerk Hafiz Alam grabbed the weapon by the barrel, quickly turned it around and pointed it at the man, who dashed out.

Seconds later, the robber rushed back into the store and leaped over the counter. Alam and the suspect, 22-year-old Justin Walker, struggled over the gun off-camera, authorities said.

The gun went off, but neither man was injured.

The robber drove off, but not before a truck driver took down his license plate number.

Police said they tracked the suspect to an Albany apartment, where they launched tear gas inside and got him to surrender. He was arrested and charged with robbery.