JUSTIFIED: Las Vegas 7/11 Protected by Armed Civilian

An attempted armed robbery of a 7-Eleven on Cheyenne Avenue and Civic Center Drive in North Las Vegas turned into a shootout on Thursday Morning that left the suspected robber, 24-year-old Rashad Ryan dead when an armed citizen inside the store shot the suspect.

“I got scared, it’s  scary, I was shaking, you know,” said bystander Alejandro Andrade Llamas. Alejandro had shown up at the 7-Eleven, where his wife works when she didn’t come home from work.

“It’s scary, I could lose my girl, you know, for, I mean, just a simple job,” he said.

Employees could be seen standing outside the convenience store where police say a bystander shot and killed the alleged armed robber.

“That armed citizen took action, fired at that suspect, striking the suspect,” said Ann Cavaricci, North Las Vegas Police.

Police say the shooter was inside the 7-Eleven fulfilling a job but is not an employee of the convenience store.

The injured suspect ran out towards a back parking lot where he collapsed. Meanwhile, employees called for police through a silent alarm. “Obviously we would like people to call police and allow us to handle that and not put themselves in danger,” Cavaricci said.

North Las Vegas Police say justifying a self-defense shooting is “tricky” and must be investigated on a case by case basis. Speaking in general terms, police say deadly force is justified when there’s an imminent threat and there’s a need to defend one’s life or someone else’s.

“In this case, there was an armed robbery going on and he felt that he needed to take action,” Cavaricci said.