A vigilante customer who fatally shot a masked robber at a Houston taqueria is being sought by police.
Shocking video footage of the robbery at Ranchito #4 in southwest Houston shows a robber circling the tables demanding cash and valuables from customers.
As the gunman passes a booth, a patron pulls out a handgun and begins firing at him from behind.
The customer continues shooting as the robber collapses to the ground near the restaurant front door, and then stands and delivers two more shots point blank, the security video recorded at 11.30pm on Thursday shows.
The robber, who was dressed in a black ski mask, black gloves and black clothing, was pronounced dead at the scene by emergency responders.
Police said the suspect was armed with a plastic pistol such as a BB gun.
The customer then returns the stolen wallets and cash to the startled diners, before leaving in his pickup truck.
Houston police have released photos of the shooter and his truck while appealing for information in finding him.
Police have not filed any charges against the customer.
“Officers were dispatched to a shooting call at the restaurant at the above address and observed an unknown black male in all black clothing, a black ski mask, and black gloves had been shot multiple times inside the business,” Houston police said in a statement.
“Paramedics pronounced him deceased. Witnesses told officers the suspect entered the restaurant and pointed a pistol at patrons as he demanded their money.
“Witnesses told officers the suspect entered the restaurant and pointed a pistol at patrons as he demanded their money.
“As the suspect collected money from patrons, one of the patrons, described as a white or Hispanic male, produced a gun of his own and shot the suspect multiple times.”
Pedro Lopez, the owner of Ranchito #4, told ABC13 that staff were deeply shaken by the incident, and were grateful for the actions of the customer.
Under Texas’s self-defense laws, citizens are allowed to use lethal force when they believe that their life or another person’s life is in immediate danger.
Legal analyst Carmen Roe told KHOU that police would want to interview the customer to verify whether he feared for his life at the time of the shooting.
