A suspected robber accused of pistol-whipping a Family Dollar clerk while trying to steal a stack of cash was thwarted by an armed witness, Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, police records show.
Nicolas Richard Lee Deas, 20, of Fort Lauderdale, and another man reportedly approached a Family Dollar employee Sept. 13 around 10 p.m. as staff closed for the day, Local 10 News reported.
Deas reportedly claimed to the employee he left his cellphone in the store and needed to run in quickly to grab it. The employee let Deas and the other man inside, but the situation quickly devolved into chaos.
"Give me the money, or I will kill you," Deas told the employee, according to a Fort Lauderdale Police arrest report.
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The employee walked the pair to the store’s safe, where the suspects stuffed $1,200 in cash into a bag. Deas pistol-whipped the employee in the neck and elbow, according to the police report.
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Unbeknownst to Deas and his accomplice, a neighboring store owner in the shopping complex heard the disturbance and jumped into action.
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Police said the man walked into the store, saw Deas with a gun in his hand and demanded he drop the weapon and get on the floor. Deas complied with the orders, while the other suspect fled.
The armed good Samaritan held Deas at gunpoint until police arrived.
Deas was taken into custody without bond on charges of armed robbery, aggravated assault with intent to commit a felony, aggravated battery with a deadly weapon, grand theft of a firearm and illegally carrying a concealed firearm. The gun Deas used during the alleged attempted robbery was stolen, according to police.
The accomplice has not been named, and it’s unclear if he’s been arrested.
