Would-Be Robber Flees Empty-Handed
A man attempting to rob a woman customer outside Trader Joe’s grocery in Ventura fled empty-handed Monday after a bystander confronted the would-be robber, police said.
Shortly after 8 p.m., the man pointed his gun at a woman coming out of the Victoria Avenue store and demanded her purse. When she ran away screaming, another man in the parking lot confronted the alleged robber, police said.
The man then asked for the good Samaritan’s money. The man said he did not have any cash, prompting the gunman to fire a shot at him, Ventura police Lt. Pat Miller said. The shot missed, and the thwarted robber jumped into a nearby car and fled, he said.
Witnesses described the suspect as about 5-foot-5, in his 20s and with a shaved head, according to police. The license plate on his car was traced to a 1983 Mitsubishi sedan. Police received conflicting reports about whether a second man was driving the car.
A search for the suspect continued late Monday.
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