Store Clerk Kills Attacker After Being Pistol-Whipped

Bay Point, California – A convenience store clerk shot and killed a  man after being pistol whipped on Sunday night.

Video footage released of the attempted robbery shows the store’s employee, 56-year-old Mark Kasprowicz, putting money away with the register open when two masked men wearing hoodies entered the store.

Kasprowicz looks up for a moment but doesn’t realize the danger he is in until one of the men comes behind the counter and attacks him. The masked man pistol-whipped Kasprowicz in the head, knocking him to the ground and opening a bleeding gash.

While the suspect was emptying the register, Kasprowicz made play for a pistol stashed in a drawer nearby. The gunman shouts to his accomplice that their victim had a gun.

A struggle ensued between the gun man and the clerk and Kasprowicz was hit two more times in the head before raising the pistol up and shooting his attacker as he crouched over him.

“When he came in, I wasn’t trying to prevent him from getting the money,” Kasprowicz said. “I was trying [to take] cover…The money was the least of my concerns…I didn’t really know that I hit him because I really didn’t take aim. I just pointed and shot once. He pointed his weapon at me again. I got lower under the counter.”

The suspects ran from the store, but the unidentified suspect was discovered a short distance away bleeding from a gunshot wound. He was pronounced dead at the scene. The Contra Costa County Sheriff’s Office say they have yet to locate the other man involved in the shooting.

The clerk was taken to the hospital where doctors closed the wound in his head with 12 staples.

“At this point I’m just thankful that I’m alive and that my coworker is alive,” he said.


Drawing on a gunman that has the drop on you is a very risky action. Having your self-defense weapon on your person is almost always the best course of action so you don’t have to try to make a play for it when you need it most.

Read here for a list of the Top 21 CCW Holsters.

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