A store clerk reportedly stabbed a customer he thought was stealing from his business.
A clerk at Taz’s Supermarket One in Raleigh, North Carolina, brandished a knife against the alleged thief Thursday at around 3:45 p.m., according to WRAL News.
Witnesses said the alleged stabbing victim stumbled outside of the supermarket, collapsing as commotion ensued, the outlet reported.
“He had a stab wound to his chest, rough, rough shape,” witness Scott McMahon told WRAL. “When I was with him, his pupils were pinpointed, he was not breathing, I couldn’t feel a pulse.” (RELATED: ‘He Shot My Arm Off!’: Elderly Liquor Store Owner Stops Robbery)
McMahon, who said he has about 20 years of experience working in an emergency room, performed CPR on the victim, according to the outlet. He appeared to be seriously injured with multiple stab wounds, ABC 11 reported.
“The store owner said that the guy was stealing, he wasn’t stealing, he turned, he pulled out a knife, threatened the man a couple of times,” witness Synscrer Palmer told WRAL. “The man kept saying leave me alone; I didn’t take nothing, I didn’t take nothing, I didn’t take nothing. They started fighting. The store owner stabbed him about two, three times.”
“No amount of product is worth another man’s life,” Palmer added.
Paramedics arrived, and radio traffic shared by WRAL captured first responders’ moments with the victim.
“He has a stab wound to his the left side of his chest; we have sealed that one, and also by his armpit,” a paramedic can be heard saying in the audio clip.
The victim survived but remains in critical condition, WRAL reported. He is receiving treatment at WakeMed, a Raleigh-based hospital. An investigation is set to continue Friday as police question the store clerk.