Armed Good Samaritan Puts Quick End to Suspect's Robbery Attempt: Police
Police say a man who allegedly pistol-whipped an employee at a dollar store during an armed robbery in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, last week is in jail thanks to the actions of an armed good Samaritan.
The story is yet another example of how risky it is becoming for criminals who the anti-gun left would prefer to be the only ones in our society who are armed.
But waving a gun around no longer puts criminals as those solely in command of situations or as the ultimate decision-makers in regard to who lives or dies during their acts of community terror.
That is especially true in states that prioritize the Second Amendment rights of everyday citizens. Those citizens have made headlines across the country more and more in recent months for standing their ground against violent and dangerous people.
If it weren’t for Florida’s gun laws, a Family Dollar clerk in Fort Lauderdale might very well have been killed.
Instead, his alleged attacker is in jail and is staring down what you would imagine would be a lengthy prison sentence if he is convicted.
According to WPLG-TV, a clerk was closing a Dollar General store in the city’s Manors neighborhood around 10 p.m. on Sept. 13.
A man approached him and asked to be let into the store, claiming he had left his phone inside, police said.
According to authorities, the man, who was identified as 20-year-old Nicolas Richard Lee Deas, did not leave his phone in the store but intended to rob it — which police say he did.
Police said Deas, who was allegedly carrying a stolen handgun, had an accomplice, and both of them entered the store together.
Per officers, Deas ordered the employee to the store’s safe at gunpoint and told him, “Give me the money or I will kill you.”
The employee complied with the order and offered up $1,200 from the safe. Police said he was pistol-whipped multiple times in the back, neck and arm.
The commotion was apparently loud enough that it roused the attention of a business owner who was in close proximity.
The man, who was armed, ran toward the situation, entered the store and drew his gun on Deas, police said.
No shots were fired, but the good Samaritan, whose name has not been released, held the suspect at gunpoint until officers could come and make an arrest – which they did.
Deas’s alleged accomplice was able to get away. It was unknown whether he made away the money from the safe, but police are looking for him. His identity has not been released.
WPLG reported Friday that Deas was in jail and being held without bond on charges of armed robbery, aggravated assault with intent to commit a felony, aggravated battery with a deadly weapon, grand theft of a firearm and illegally carrying a concealed firearm.
The charges are minor in comparison with what could have happened had the good Samaritan opened fire and killed him.
Thankfully, no one in this robbery lost his life.
But stories such as this one should serve as a reminder that people whose intent is to harm, steal or kill are risking more than prison time through their actions when they mess around in states that cherish gun rights.
Armed criminals in these areas of the country are on notice that at any moment, they might be on the other end of a gun.
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