Another NY Pharmacy Robbery

BLNN sends me this story from New York.

An off-duty federal law enforcement agent who happened to be in a pharmacy during a holdup confronted the robber as he tried to leave with money and painkillers, and both were shot to death.

The off-duty Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives agent died after being taken to a hospital with a gunshot wound Saturday, Nassau County police Lt. Kevin Smith said.

I have no love for the BATFE, but this officer acted as a citizen, not as an agent of the law. I think last year’s robbery is still fresh on our minds where the robber killed everybody in the store, dispute their compliance.

Two things to note. A gun is not a magical shield, it is a tool. Much like how trained fire fighters still perish in burning buildings despite training, tools, and support, a gun will not protect you from harm, and the only sure way to survive a gunfight is not to be in one. Still I think the officer was thinking exactly what I was, there was a good chance he was already dead no matter WHAT. His actions didn’t save HIS life, but very possibly the lives of others in the Pharmacy….not to mention future victims of this goblin.

One other thing of note is that the only thing that kept him as disarmed as the other patrons if it wasn’t for his federal badge.

He is no more human than I, and his rights are no more important. Still he died a hero, and that shouldn’t be forgotten.

Carry your guns people, you never know when you might need them.

**UPDATE**Dwight of Whipped Cream Difficulties (Again I love that blog name too much to not mention it every chance I get!) Links this story and speculates if the officer may have been shot by responding New York Police officers.

Surveillance footage from the pharmacy shows that along with other customers, Agent Capano, 51, had initially put his hands above his head, as the robber, who appeared to be armed with a gun, took cash and hundreds of pills or capsules of the painkillers oxycodone and Opana, according to a person familiar with the investigation.

As the suspect, whom the police identified as James McGoey, 43, began to walk away, Agent Capano trailed after him down a parallel aisle. Near the door, Agent Capano shot Mr. McGoey once, striking him in the leg or hip, the person said.

As the two men spilled outside, two more men arrived: an off-duty officer of the New York Police Department and a recently retired Nassau County police lieutenant. Both had been in a nearby deli, and one or both were armed, according to the person and another official, both of whom spoke on the condition of anonymity because the inquiry was continuing.

More shots were fired in the seconds that followed, and details of precisely what occurred remained murky a day later.

Seems very fishy. Keep your eyes peeled. I’m very curious what the end result will be.