|
Gunman killed in Manheim robbery attempt
By Lititz Record
Lititz Record Express
Published: Jul 24, 2008 12:17 PM EST
Manheim -
A man was shot and killed by the manager of Power Pro Battery Co. in
Manheim early Tuesday when he and an accomplice held up the manager with a
semiautomatic weapon, police said.
According to the Intelligencer
Journal, Kevin Lee Smith, 19, of Lancaster, was transported to Lancaster
General Hospital, where he later died from a chest wound after the manager
shot him.
Police said the manager acted in
self-defense.
John Roads, owner of the 210 S. Penn St. business said
he or his manager usually open the business before 6 a.m., but Tuesday was
not his day to handle the task.
The manager explained the robbery
circumstances to Roads on Tuesday morning, telling him two men were hiding
under the wooden steps leading to the front entrance of the
building.
Roads said he was at home when he got a phone call from
the alarm company early Tuesday notifying him of a break-in at his
business. He later heard from his manager, who told him he had shot a
man.
According the Intelligencer Journal:
Roads said the
manager claims the two men made a noise under the steps, dropping a cell
phone and a backpack and alerting him to their presence.
As the
manager put the key in the front door, the two men, wearing black clothing,
baseball caps and bandannas over their faces, walked up the stairs and
followed him into the business, pointing a TEC-9 semiautomatic weapon at
his back.
They pushed him into an office five feet inside the
entrance and stayed in the hallway, with a security camera in the hallway
catching most of the action.
The two men patted down the manager,
taking his wallet and a company cell phone. However, they failed to pat
down his other pocket, which contained a small-caliber semiautomatic pistol
that he carried for protection.
The manager was told to open the
business safe, and as the two men briefly looked toward the door, he pulled
the gun from his pocket, firing two shots at Smith, who was holding the
TEC-9.
Everything happened in two to three minutes, the manager told
Roads.
The two men ran from the business, dropping the gun near a
telephone pole, and they also dropped other items along West Stiegel
Street, including hats and a backpack.
Police said a preliminary
examination of the TEC-9 showed the weapon was jammed, indicating that the
trigger was pulled at some point. Police said they were not sure when it
was discharged.
Blood spots were still visible on West Stiegel
Street Tuesday afternoon.
Smith collapsed about 400 yards from the
business as the other man ran from the scene.
Manheim Borough police
were called to the shooting scene near the intersection of South Penn and
West Stiegel streets just after 5 a.m., and they found Smith on the street
with gunshot wounds to the chest and wrist.
Police were searching
for the second man Tuesday night. He is described as 5 feet 8 inches tall,
with a dark complexion and a medium build. He was wearing black clothing
and a black baseball hat. Anyone with information is asked to call Manheim
Borough police at 665-2481 or 664-1180.
|
