A robbery suspect in California inadvertently shot himself in the head as he was struck by a victim's vehicle early Wednesday outside a Denny's restaurant, authorities said.
"He's running away from the scene with a gun in his hand when the victims chased him in the car," Hawthorne police Lt. Ti Goetz told KABC. "When they struck him it launched his body up in the air and somewhere in that process, the gun in his hand fired, resulting in him getting a bullet in the head."
The incident began around 2:45 a.m. when one person robbed a group of four victims in the Denny’s parking lot, KABC reported.
Authorities said the suspected robber had two accomplices waiting around the corner in a getaway vehicle.
Surveillance cameras showed the victims leaving the restaurant and getting into a car. Then the suspect robbed them. The suspect attempted to run toward the getaway car, but the driver in the victim's car put the vehicle into reverse and dragged the gunman back.The suspect regained his balance and tried to reach the getaway vehicle again. That is when the victim's car is seen on the camera barreling toward the gunman in the parking lot, knocking him down and causing him to accidentally shoot himself.
That suspect, who was not identified, was taken to Harbor General Hospital in Torrance where he was listed in critical but stable condition. The two accomplices fled the parking lot and remained at large, Hawthorne police said. A handgun was recovered at the scene, KABC reported.The owner of the restaurant, Amir Obeid, told KABC he does not feel sorry for the suspect.
"I'm not going to say any prayers for the suspect because he kind of got what's coming to him, you know," Obied said. "He decided to rob somebody and that's what happens. You're taking a chance whenever you do something like that."
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