A masked attacker was fatally shot by a customer at a 7-Eleven in White Center, Washington, on March 13, 2016. (Credit: KCPQ)

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A man wielding a hatchet inside a 7-Eleven store in the Seattle area was shot and killed early Sunday morning by a customer who had a concealed carry permit, KTLA sister station KCPQ reported.

The incident began around 5:45 a.m. when the masked men entered the convenience store and -- without saying a word -- started swinging a hatchet toward a customer, according to the Seattle-based television station.

He then attacked the store's 58-year-old clerk before the customer took out a pistol and shot him, the King County Sheriff's Office told the station.

The unidentified attacker, described only as a man in his 40s, was pronounced dead at the scene.

The clerk suffered minor injuries to the stomach.

“Fortunately, because of this customer with his weapon, this could have been a lot worse,” sheriff’s Sgt. Cindi West told the station. “The clerk could be the one laying there dead on the floor right now.”

The customer, a 60-year-old Seattle resident, visits the store daily and was drinking his morning coffee when the incident started, according to investigators.

The attacker's name would be released at a later date, pending the completion of an autopsy, the station reported.

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