A gun store owner in Philadelphia opened fire on a group of looters inside his business early Tuesday, killing one, police said.
Police said the 67-year-old owner of the Firing Line Inc. gun store in South Philadelphia took up arms to protect his business as riots continued in the city and across the country in the aftermath of the Minneapolis Police custody death of George Floyd, NBC Philadelphia reported.
The owner told police he was monitoring his surveillance camera when he saw three or four men trying to break in his store using bolt cutters on the front gate about 4:15 a.m. Police said the men eventually broke into the building by smashing the back door and made their way up the stairs where the owner was waiting with his Bushmaster M4 rifle.
“One of the individuals that broke into the property, pointed a handgun at him,” Chief Inspector Scott Smalls told Fox 29. “And that’s when the store owner fired his own weapon, striking the one perpetrator at least one time in the head and he collapsed, dropping his gun between his legs.”
That man reportedly died at the scene. The others fled the scene and have not been located, police said.
The business owner was not hurt, police said.
• Jessica Chasmar can be reached at jchasmar@washingtontimes.com.
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