JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – A man was with his 10-year-old daughter when he rushed to help a Trout River Food Store clerk shot during a robbery Tuesday night.
The Jacksonville Sheriff's Office said it happened about 8:50 p.m. at the Northside convenience store on Lem Turner Road at Broward Road.
Police said a man went into the food store, demanded money from the clerk, shot the clerk in the leg, took money from the register and then ran off.
The man who rushed to help the clerk recounted to terrifying moments. The witness on Thursday told News4Jax that he had his 10-year-old daughter with him when they both heard the gunshot.
"Me and my daughter pulled up to the store. We had to get out of the car, and we heard something say, 'Pow,'" said the man, who wished to remain anonymous. "I rolled down the window, and the employee ran out of the employee ran out of the store, saying he had just gotten shot and call the police."
The father said if he would have walked in the store a few seconds earlier, his life could have changed. But he also said he's glad he pulled up in time to help the clerk.
"It was a scary situation when I'm with my daughter. We could've walked in on it," he said. "It's a selfish world now."
The clerk was taken to UF Health with non-life-threatening injuries. The clerk, who News4Jax has chosen not to identify, said the gunman was one of his regular customers and doesn't know why he would shoot him.
News4Jax crime and safety analyst Gil Smith said that the clerk's ability to identify the shooter will help the investigation greatly. The store also had surveillance cameras capturing the shooting.
"It is possible they can catch him," Smith said. "There may be physical evidence here at the scene. Physical evidence left behind by the suspect."
Another store employee said that there was a robbery at the store about a year ago, and that the same clerk was on duty at that time.
Customers of the store told News4Jax on Wednesday that they are shocked that it happened.
"He probably was planning on that. He probably had to plan on that," Devin Wilson, a store regular said. "That didn't just happen out of nowhere."
Police said they're still looking for the shooter who robbed the food store. He was described as a black man wearing an orange striped shirt with a cast.
Anyone with information is asked to call the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office at 904-630-0500. To remain anonymous, call Crime Stoppers at 1-866-845-TIPS.