Suspected Thief Shot Dead by Store Owner

An alleged bicycle thief was fatally shot Friday following a struggle that began when he attacked a shop owner with a hammer, according to police.

No charges were filed against the proprietor of the Pedal Shop, at the intersection of Lankershim Boulevard and Kling Street, where the confrontation took place.

Police declined to name the businessman, identified in public records as Larry Hoffman, who they said had fired in self-defense.

The mortally wounded shooting victim, meanwhile, was driven by his nephew in an alleged getaway van from the bike shop to his nearby home in the 6100 block of Cleon Avenue.

Identified by police as Antonio Fierro, 42, he was found dead inside the van by relatives, who called the police.

“He was a good father for his kids,” said Fierro’s wife, who did not want to be named. She said she was unconvinced by the official account of the shooting.

“I don’t believe it,” she said. “The story just sounds so dopey.”

Police said the incident began about 12:30 p.m. when Fierro entered the store, inspected a few bicycles and left. Fifteen minutes later, when Hoffman was the only person in the store, Fierro returned, approached the counter and allegedly swung a hammer at him.

The two struggled for the hammer for a few moments until Hoffman broke free and ran out into the street calling aloud for help.

Someone working across the street, meanwhile, called police, according to Los Angeles Police Det. Mike Coffey of the North Hollywood Division.

Hoffman ran back into the store and, seeing no sign of his attacker, he pulled a .38-caliber revolver from under the counter and went to the back of the store, Coffey said.

There he saw Fierro throwing a used men’s mountain bike into a white van driven by his 31-year-old nephew.

Hammer in hand, Fierro started walking toward Hoffman, who yelled, “Stop, I have a gun, stop,” Coffey said. The proprietor told police he shot Fierro at least twice when his warning was ignored.

Police found a hammer in the parking lot behind the bicycle shop and the mountain bike in an alley between two adjacent Cleon Avenue houses occupied by Fierro and his family. The bicycle still had a Pedal Shop price tag on it.

The nephew was not booked on charges and was not named by police.