‘He saved a girl’s life.’ Store worker kills robber in shootout, Louisiana cops say

An armed gas station employee shot and killed a robber Tuesday night in New Orleans, outlets report, and police are calling it justified.

A gunman entered the Big E-Z Fuel Stop around 10 p.m., pulled his pistol on a worker and forced her to start emptying the cash register, store owner Nick Hingel told The New Orleans Advocate.

“She must not have been moving fast enough because he just started shooting, ‘Boom. Boom. Boom. Boom,’” Hingel said.

Another employee, who carries a gun, heard the shots and confronted the robber.

“He told the robber, ‘Drop to the floor and put your gun down,’” Hingel told the outlet.

The robber didn’t heed that command. Instead, he opened fire on the worker, and the worker shot back, killing him, WWLTV reported.

“He saved a girl’s life,” Hingel told the station.

Following an investigation into the incident, New Orleans police determined the employee acted in self-defense and no charges are being filed against him, according to WWLTV.

No workers or customers were hurt, WVUE reported, though Hingel says the two employees are still shaken from the ordeal and will take a few days off.

“I’m not going to open the store until after Christmas and give everybody a chance to settle down a little bit,” Hingel said.

The identity of the robber has not been released, as the shooting is still under investigation, WVUE reported.

This story was originally published December 23, 2020 at 8:45 PM with the headline "‘He saved a girl’s life.’ Store worker kills robber in shootout, Louisiana cops say."