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Ill. officer forced to end pursuit when concealed carrier fires at suspect

A man with a concealed carry permit shot at an armed robbery suspect who had stolen items from a cell phone store

By Carlos Sadovi
Chicago Tribune

CRESTWOOD, Ill. — A man with a concealed carry permit shot at an armed robbery suspect who had stolen items from a cell phone store in South Suburban Crestwood and was fleeing, police said today.

According to police, the man with the permit was about to step inside an AT&T store at 11:58 a.m. Saturday at 4756 W. Cal-Sag Road, Crestwood police said in a statement.

But before the man went inside he noticed that the store was being robbed and he told police that he stayed out in front to prevent anyone from entering, police said. The man told police that after he saw the suspect leaving through a back door he then entered the building and ran out the door, according to police.

A police officer had been flagged down by several people who told them the store was being robbed, police said. The officer at that point spotted someone running from the rear of the building with a large duffel bag, police said. The officer noticed that the suspect had a gun in his hand.

While police were pursuing the suspect, the concealed carry permit holder noticed that the suspect was running away and he fired two shots from his gun, police said.

“Since the officer did not know where the shots were fired from, he was forced to terminate his foot pursuit and take cover for his own safety,” police said.

After setting up a perimeter along the Cal-Sag Canal, the suspect was seen fleeing from the woods and was taken into custody by Crestwood and Palos Heights police, police said.

No injuries were reported from the armed robbery or the shooting by the concealed carry permit holder.

The suspect of the armed robbery, Demetrius Merrill of Chicago was charged with armed robbery and ordered held in lieu of $1 million bail.

Copyright 2014 the Chicago Tribune

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