Shots Erupt in Store During Robbery

A gun battle erupted inside a Pacoima market on Monday when two robbers shot an armored car guard and then fled the business with a bag of cash, Los Angeles police said.

The 28-year-old guard suffered gunshot wounds to his arm and buttocks, police said. He was taken to Holy Cross Medical Center where he was treated and released, hospital officials said.

The guard, whose name was not released, was picking up money from Bargain Foods at 10455 Laurel Canyon Blvd., when he was approached by two gunmen who demanded the cash, Detective Jimmy Grayson said. At least one gunman subsequently fired several shots, striking the messenger, who returned fired but missed his assailants.

The robbers seized a bag containing the grocery store’s money and fled on foot, at one point running through a nearby Mexican restaurant, Grayson said.

Two other suspects, who had been spotted outside the business in a late-model Oldsmobile, sped away by car, Grayson said. No suspects were taken into custody. None of the more than two dozen employees and customers inside the store at the time was injured.

Store officials and police declined to disclose the amount of money taken in the robbery. Police said the guard was a two-year employee of Armored Transport.