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Teen Brings Wrong Bullets To Failed Store Robbery

Thursday, January 22, 2004 – updated: 12:06 pm EST January 22, 2004

South Florida police say a teenager tried to rob a convenience store, but had the wrong bullets for his weapon. When customers saw the 16-year-old struggling to load the weapon, they took action and it was all caught on tape.

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Surveillance cameras inside the 7-Eleven store in Dania Beach show the 16-year-old walk in with his shirt over his head, holding a .22-caliber rifle. He pointed the rifle and the clerk, but then lowered it and began going through his pockets.

"[He] remembers he forgot to load it. So he takes time out to reach in his pocket, pulls out a .40-caliber bullet and he tries to cram it into this. 22-caliber rifle. Of course, the bullet won't go," explains Jim Leljedal, Broward County Sheriff's Office.

A customer saw he was having trouble and sprung into action, tackling the teenager. Other customers then joined in. They pinned the teenager down and called police.

"They could see that there was an opportunity to act and the took action and, fortunately in this case, they managed to catch this young armed robber," says Leljedal.

The high school sophomore will be charged with armed robbery. Investigators say they'd like to add another charge; he should be charged with armed robbery and stupidity, but he's just charged with armed robbery at this point.

The state attorney's office will decide whether to charge the teenager as an adult.

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