A Home Depot employee in California has been shot and killed outside his store while trying to stop a burglar and her boyfriend who escaped with a two-year-old in their car.
Blake Moss, 26, was fatally injured during a struggle that occurred after he spotted the couple trying to leave in Pleasanton, east of San Francisco, on Tuesday.
Police said Benicia Knapes, 32, and David Guillory, 31, were later arrested on suspicion of murder, theft, child endangerment and conspiracy.
Witnesses said Knabs, a licensed security guard with a criminal history, attempted to steal a phone charger.
Blake Moss (right) was fatally shot at the Home Depot in Pleasanton, Calif., on Tuesday. Pictured with his fiancee, Casey Seligman
The loading dock area outside Home Depot, where Mohs was shot
Police responded to calls at around 2.15pm of a bleeding man inside the shop and provided assistance to the victim before taking him to a nearby hospital.
An Alameda County coroner later confirmed the victim’s death, and Home Depot confirmed that he was an employee.
We are saddened by this senseless tragedy. Blake has been our partner and friend, the retailer said in a statement, and our hearts go out to his family and everyone who knew and loved him.
The Alameda County Sheriff’s Office quickly located the suspects’ vehicle and detained them around 2.30pm in Oakland before a gun was found at a nearby intersection.
Moss was reportedly a Boy Scout leader who was engaged to be married to his fiancée, Casey Seligman.
Pleasanton Police Lt. Eric Silachi said Knapps was trying to steal an electrical device and was “determined to get out without paying.”
Moss confronted her and a “physical confrontation” ensued.
Knapes then pulled out a gun and fired what could have been fatal shots at Moss, Slachi said.
Knapps is a licensed security guard with a criminal history involving theft, according to California state records.
Her two-year-old was apparently in the car at the time and his relatives were released.
Guillory was booked into the Santa Rita Jail and Knapps was taken to the hospital and “will later be taken to jail.”
According to their Facebook pages, the couple is dating. Both of them are arrested
We are saddened by this senseless tragedy. Home Depot said in a statement that Blake has been our partner and friend, and our thoughts are with his family and everyone who knew and loved him.
The suspects were arrested by Pleasanton Police shortly after in Oakland. The two-year-old was delivered in the car with the family
Moss and Seligman met while they were volunteering with the Boy Scouts. They were scheduled to get married on August 12 of this year
The Mayor of Pleasanton said: “I am devastated by the loss of Blake Moss in yesterday’s senseless shooting.
Through his service to Tri-Valley organizations, Blake has set an example for others. Taking life short is heartbreaking and infuriating.
Scott Rodgers, one of Moss’s friends, told KTVU that Moss was loved by everyone and was “an amazing person.”
Moss has been a volunteer with younger Boy Scouts, he said, having reached the rank of Eagle Scout — the highest rank a Scout can have before he turns 18 — in 2014.
Moss’s wedding website shows that he was to be married on August 12 at the campsite where he met Seligman, while they were both volunteering with the Boy Scouts.
Gary Rasor, an 83-year-old Home Depot employee in North Carolina, was killed in January while trying to stop a robber. Rasor can be seen slowly approaching the suspect and placing his gentle hand on his arm. Surveillance footage shows the suspect, who was wearing a black Calvin Klein T-shirt and mask, placing a strong arm across the older man’s shoulders and pushing him to the ground as he walked.
The shooting comes several months after an 83-year-old man was killed at a Home Depot in North Carolina while trying to confront a burglar with stolen goods worth several hundred dollars.
Authorities have shared the horrific footage of a suspect pushing the 83-year-old to the ground as he exited the store with a cart of stolen goods.
Victim Gary Rasor succumbed to his injuries weeks after the assault.
The suspect, Terry McAnthony McMillian Jr., 26, was arrested in January and charged with first degree murder and robbery.
