Local

Wife: Store owner fired at suspects trying to rob him

CHARLOTTE — According to the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department, a shooting Sunday afternoon off of South Boulevard was an attempted robbery gone wrong.

Police said the robbery and shooting happened inside of a Wholesale Mattress warehouse store at the 7100 block of South Boulevard.

Eyewitness News reporter Tina Terry spoke with the mattress store owner's wife, who said her husband was inside when the attempted robbery happened.

She said two young men walked inside pretending to want a mattress. She also said one of the men walked up to her husband, put a gun in his face, and demanded his cellphone and any money in the store. The man threatened to kill her husband if he did not comply.

Her husband turned around pretending to get money, and at that point he pulled out a gun and shot one of the suspects. The suspect fired back at him, but did not hit him.

Channel 9 went inside the store and could see bullets from the shootout in the walls. The owner's wife is grateful her husband was not shot.

The other suspect ran away. People who live in the neighborhood said they were surprised about the incident.

"I was kinda shocked, because something like that don't normally happen on this side," said neighbor Robert Witherspoon.

Police said the gunman was rushed to the hospital. They took another suspect into custody. There is no word on his condition, or what the suspects will be charged with.