http://www.arizonarepublic.com/arizona/articles/0527tempeshoot27.html Attempted robbery leaves 1 dead, 2 hurt By Senta Scarborough and Carlos Miller The Arizona Republic May 27, 2002 A pawnshop employee armed with a shotgun outmatched three men suspected of trying to rob the store at gunpoint Sunday, leaving one suspect dead, one suspect critically injured and a suspect in custody. A second pawnshop employee was shot at least once in the leg during the botched robbery, Tempe police Sgt. Dan Masters said. No names of victims, suspects or employees have been released by police. The attempted robbery occurred about 4:55 p.m. at the Pawn Tempe Loan Co. at Southern Avenue and Kyrene Road, police said. A gun battle broke out between the suspects and store employees, Masters said. "He (an employee) had shells in his pocket," said J.T. Clark, who frequents the pawnshop with his father. "They have enough guns in there to hold up an army." One suspect died a few feet outside the store and was later pronounced dead at Tempe St. Luke's Hospital, police said. The other suspects, a driver and a passenger, who suffered a gunshot wound in the face, fled in a dark green Monte Carlo on Mill Avenue heading south toward U.S. 60. When police received the robbery call, they requested paramedics to a nearby location, Masters said. But the fleeing suspects spotted the paramedics about a mile and a half from the pawnshop, at the Shurgard Storage parking lot, not realizing they were there responding to the incident, and sought medical attention. The wounded passenger, who had been wearing body armor when shot, was treated by Tempe paramedics and transported to Scottsdale Osborne Hospital. The driver was arrested. The employee who was shot at least once in the leg was also transported to Scottsdale Osborne.

Chalk another one up for the Good Guys!

lol, they wore body armor but ended up getting shot in the face

Here is another example of why Arcane, KTW, BAT, etc. should be made available to ALL citizens. Equal protection under the law.

I totally agree. I mean you've got to be damn desperate or a f*ckin retard to try to rob a gunshop. I'm glad the good guys took care of the job with minimal injury to themselves. Go Good Guys. Viva Second Amendment!!

I wish I still had the article, but there was a guy who tried to rob a gun store, who had to [i]walk around a police cruiser[/i] to get into the shop. He went in and shot a hole in the ceiling while yelling "this is a stick up!" He was promptly shot by the proprieter, the cop and a civilian with a CCW. I've never read of a stupider criminal.

Moral of the story: Practice Mozambique drills and double-taps to the ocular cavity.

wheres a pawnshop ninja when you need one? [BD]

Quotes to make the baby Jesus smile : [:D]

Absolutely. But instead of legalizing AP ammo, this incident will probably used as fodder for banning body armor or further restricting guns. [(:|)]

Pawnshop Ninjas don't have the advantage of stealth. All of those keys make too much noise.

That may have been the thread I started a few weeks ago regarding a gunstore I'm working in... The threat was for real, and the warning came from ATF... No "goblins" showed up yet, but local LE were all over the area for about a week after the ATF "tip"... The badguys probably spotted the increased patrols, and postponed their robbery plans for awhile... We still keep ourselves at an elevated state of alert... I don't wear body armor while working, but on my side at all times is a Glock 17 with 19+1 rounds of +P Speer gold dots... There are also several loaded weapons located in easy to grab locations behind the counter... We've even had customers comment on how suicidal it would be for someone to attempt a robbery of our place... Hope we never find ourselves in that situation...

A friend suggested that the shotgun shot to the head might have been the result of a failed shot to the torso. Maybe, who knows. But can you imagine the jolt to the crook's system (body armor or no, trauma plate or no) if he got even 1300 fps #8 birdshot to the chest? Rick

One would think there would be an easier way to make a fast buck. Hell, they could have pawned their body armor. [rolleyes]

Must not be any convenient stores or Blockbuster rental places around for easy pickens[rolleyes]

I dunno. shotguns are pointing weapons and tend to go where you are looking and you tend to look at people's faces. I would think that would be the natural point of aim...

Too bad all three of those two legged vermin were not exterminated. I hope the owner of that pawnshop gives those guys a raise!

Why? Most of them dont work against state of the art body armor either. Well maybe that is a exaggeration If the owner had a M4gery instead of a shotgun they would ALL be dead... M855 is legal right now and it chews through all soft vests at indoor engagement ranges.

Nobody ever teaches not to shoot the old mellon,just you will have more luck at hitting center mass. Any body that had to shoot a critter at close range allways blows his fool head-off ,or puts one right between the ole headlights. Snipers rifle or just a damn good shot,and body armor kinda looses some of it's design priorities. Any way good shooting men. bob [50]

they wanted to practice for robbing the police station, unfortunaly they will need more training before they can do it.

good god, people! we have to ban guns now! we have to make sure it's safe for our criminals. they shouldn't have to wear body armor!!!!!!!!! next thing we know, they'll have to wear kevlar helmets too!!!!!

State of the art AP handgun bullets, Cyclones for example, would defeat most if not all soft body armor. How many people are going to walk around their store with a rifle slung on them all of the time? None at all.

Dont speek in such absolutes Imbrog.. this is Arizona after all, and it is perfectly legal to do so. This guy in the article was using a shotgun by the way, I dont thnk he was wearing it either when the attack began.

A guy tried to rob a gun store in Concord about 15 years ago. My brother was walking out of the shop next door after picking up a burrito or something, and the next thing he knows this guy comes flying out the front door of the gun store minus his chin and most of his neck. Seems the shop owner, an ex cop, emptied both barrels of a 12-gauge coach gun into the guy's lower facial area. To this day, my bro says he can't get that image out of his mind. Note to self, if ever decide to become a criminal, stick to white collar crime.

>sarcasm on< This is why Body Armor should not be legal. It will only fall into the hands of criminals. Civilians should do not "need" such a thing and if they do they should visit their local PD. You do not have a Constitutional right to protect your vital organs, therefore you will not be allowed to possess armor unless we deem it to be so. Body Armor on Cops is more important then Body Armor on Civilians who cant be trusted with a set. >sarcasm off< lib