Shootout at jewelry store in Oakland’s Fruitvale – worker opens fire

Oakland jewelry store clerk gets in shootout with would-be robbers

A shootout in an Oakland jewelry store was caught on video. It shows a worker open fire on two men trying to rob the business. KTVU spoke with the worker who fired at the intruders and scared them away.

OAKLAND, Calif. - Two armed men intent on robbing a jewelry store in Oakland's Fruitvale neighborhood got more than they bargained for when a worker opened fire at them with his own weapon.

It happened at MSM Jewelry store near 41st Avenue and International Boulevard at about 10 a.m. Monday.

The worker, who didn't want to be identified, says he saw a Toyota Camry pull up on the wrong side of the street right outside his shop.

"I saw two guys creeping up really quick so I was like, it's a robbery," he said.

The two men, both wearing masks, came inside with guns drawn.

The worker said he fired the first shot from his 9mm handgun.

"They told me don't move, or we'll shoot. So I started shooting at them because they had the guns pointed at me," he said. "They were shooting back. It was going back and forth for like 20 seconds."

He said the men fired about 20 shots at him, one with a .40-caliber handgun with a drum magazine. The other had a 9mm with an extended magazine. These large capacity magazines are illegal.

"And then I ducked, right, and then I waited to see him like scrambling. The other guy was still shooting. And then I popped my head out and shot about seven more," he said.

In their scramble to escape, one man left one of his shoes behind. The worker believes he shot this guy in the shoulder.

The same man was also hit by his own getaway car, driven by a third person.

Oakland police took a report. Officers did not cite or arrest the worker.

"They said, ‘You did the right thing.’ They said, ‘You followed - you did everything right.’ They said we're just going to take your guns until the investigation's done, but I have more," he said.

The store is riddled with bullet holes on the walls, the floor, the mirror and in a back room, where the worker had some measure of protection.

"It is what it is. It happened. I just don't want them to come back."

He had this message for the would-be robbers if they do return.

"If you come back again, try to do the same thing, we're just going to defend ourselves. At this point, you have to," he said.

Henry Lee is a KTVU crime reporter. E-mail Henry at Henry.Lee@Fox.com and follow him on Twitter @henrykleeKTVU and www.facebook.com/henrykleefan