Compton beauty store shooting: Man fatally shot by customer after groping woman, threatening to kill people
A man was shot and killed by a customer inside a Compton beauty supply store after he allegedly groped another customer and threaten to kill people inside, authorities said.
Deputies were called about 3:30 p.m. Sunday to the Pink Beauty Supply store in the 1300 block of East Alondra Boulevard, according to the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department. Arriving deputies found a man suffering from a gunshot wound, and he was pronounced dead at the scene.
The man entered the store following a female customer and then groped her, prompting employees to ask him to leave, according to sheriff's officials.
"The male became increasingly verbally assaultive toward employees and customers," sheriff's officials said in a news release Monday. "He started throwing and damaging merchandise in the store. The incident rapidly escalated."
Employees and customers said the man had what they believed was a knife in his hand, according to the news release.
"The male made verbal threats that he was going to kill and harm everyone in the store," sheriff's officials said.
The threats resulted in an another customer in the store getting her gun and firing a warning shot at the man. The man turned toward the customer, prompting her to fire a second shot that struck him, sheriff's officials said.
Investigators say the customer who shot the man feared for her safety when she opened fire. It'll be up to the DA's office to decide if the woman will face any charges in connection with the fatal shooting.
Investigators believe, based on video evidence, that other customers were in the store, and they urged anyone who witnessed the confrontation to come forward. Other people were believed to be in the parking lot and may have seen the man before he went into the store. They were also urged to contact sheriff's officials.
Workers who didn't want to be identified say the entire incident was caught by the security system.
An investigation is ongoing.
City News Service contributed to this report.
