WSMV Channel 4 Would-be robber was seconds away from being shot by clerk

Would-be robber was seconds away from being shot by clerk

Rod Guy was working the counter at a liquor store on Trinity Lane when a suspicious man walked in the store.

"When he came in he started walking around the store, so I stood up and watched him. He got a bottle of vodka and he sat it up on the counter," said Guy.

Within seconds, Guy came face-to-face with a man police say was trying to rob his store.

"He said, 'Give me your money.' I said, 'Excuse me?' Four times he hollered it out. At that point he reached over and tried to open my register, that's when I reached for my pistol," said Guy.

Guy keeps a powerful gun at the ready near the cash register. It was at that point that Guy had to make a split-second decision - when the man on the other side of the counter reached in his jacket. It was a subtle way of indicating he may have a gun.

"I said 'Dude, please stop, I'll kill you, I'll kill you, kill you,'" said Guy.

Guy did not want to use deadly force unless the would-be robber called his hand. Guy had his finger on the trigger ready to shoot.

"I don't want to shoot nobody, I don't know if the Lord stepped in and said, 'Hey, back down,'" said Guy.

It was at that point the standoff took a different turn, the man reached for a liquor bottle he had brought to the counter and ran out the door. Guy was determined not to end it there. He chased the man. Security cameras caught the incident not only inside the store but outside as well.

"I hollered, and I just punched him. Hit him right under the eye, first punch. It was a good, solid blow, and then I hit him three or four more times in the head," said Guy.

The man was bloodied; he staggered then fell to his feet a number of times before police caught up with him at a nearby motel down the street.

The liquor store has eight cameras, every move was caught by the cameras.

Copyright 2012 WSMV (Meredith Corporation). All rights reserved.