Nobody wants to be in a position where their life is a gunshot away. Robbery, theft, and burglary – most of these crimes usually involve a man armed with any form of weapon to persuade their victim to give him what they want.
Our initial reaction during those times would be to give what they are asking for – your phone, jewelry, cash, or car – hoping they would leave you unharmed. After all, you can replace those things, but you can’t say the same thing with your life.
The man with a gun would always think they have the upper hand during those situations. But this 80-year-old liquor store owner in Norco showed the man who tried to rob their store that they weren’t the only one with the license to shoot.
They robbed the wrong store
The incident happened Sunday at 2:45 AM when a masked man carrying a gun entered the Norco convenience store. 80-year-old Craig Cope’s first instinct was to grab his shotgun.
In a matter of seconds, he shot the robber in his arm. The man screamed in pain and escaped with four other guys in a black vehicle. Unfortunately for Craig, he suffered a heart attack after that traumatic incident.
The aftermath
Craig was rushed to the hospital and needed three stents. He was in there for a while and returned to attend to his store a few days after.
People who heard of the incident visited his shop – some even driving miles to see him. They were amazed how Craig could fend off the robber, more so that the man who held him up was armed. It would take a lot of tact and less-to-no panic to decide what to do.
Unfortunately for the robber, he was also rushed to the hospital and was in critical condition.
Lesson learned
Craig’s wife said he barely used his gun, although he also admitted that he was trained to use a gun for hunting. The couple didn’t expect that there would come a time that he would pull out that gun and use it.
His wife, who preferred to remain anonymous, had a message for those who were planning to rob any store in Norco:
“Stay out of Norco because everybody in Norco has a gun,” she told CBS News.
A message to robbers on behalf of store owners
Craig told CBS that he didn’t want to hurt anyone. However, as a store owner, he would do anything to protect his staff, his business, and himself in case they get robbed. He was thankful that he only had to defend himself at that time.
He also said that he felt strongly about this incident because he knows what other small business owners had to endure to keep themselves afloat and that they don’t deserve to be robbed of everything they have.
“Everybody works hard. They got bills to pay. These guys are going to come in and take it away from you. Not here,” he added in that same interview.
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