A customer caught in the middle of an armed robbery took matters into his own hands and shot the suspect.

It happened Wednesday night in the south suburbs where robbers have been targeting auto parts stores.

“It just happened to be a concealed carry permit holder, and, encountered the bad guy,” said Dolton Police Chief Robert Collins Jr.

Collins Junior says that when an armed robber fled from an advance auto parts store around 8 p.m. Wednesday night, it wasn't the Dolton police who took him down. It was a local resident with a concealed carry permit and a gun.

When the masked robber entered the store and started shooting, two alert employees had locked themselves in the washroom and called 911. The suspect apparently realized police were on the way, and headed outside.


“When the suspect ran out, he had the gun in his hand, he was running in the direction of a customer. The customer, who has a valid concealed carry permit, pulled his weapon and shot him in the abdomen,” Collins said.

The suspect, identified by police as 21-year-old Jonathan Agins, later died at the hospital. Police say there have been numerous robberies along Sibley Boulevard.

Dolton police say they encourage potential witnesses to a crime to try and become the best witnesses possible, but they also don't discourage people from doing what's needed to protect themselves.

“The way that the suspect ran out of the building happened to be in the direction of where the customer had come out. So apparently he feared for his life at that time he sees an armed person running in his direction. He shot the suspect,” Collins said.

The chief says the customer who shot the suspect was taken to a hospital, but had not injuries. The state's attorney’s office is reviewing the shooting.

Police say the shooting was caught on surveillance cameras and the video will be turned over to prosecutors for their review.