Robbery suspect shot at Yeager’s Sporting Goods Thursday
Two attempted robberies led to the shooting of a 37-year-old man at Yeager’s Sporting Goods in Bellingham on Thursday afternoon, Jan. 28.
The man who was shot,
The second attempted robbery happened just after noon when a man entered Yeager’s with a hammer and tried to smash one of the glass cases holding several firearms, said Justin Simpson, the store’s general manager. After several unsuccessful attempts at smashing the case, Simpson said the man hopped over the counter and tried to access the weapons.
A Yeager’s employee with a concealed weapons permit fired one shot from his gun, Simpson said. Bellingham Police arrived on the scene soon after and took control of the situation, evacuating the store. Simpson declined to identify the employee.
The 37-year-old robbery suspect was shot in the chest and was taken to St. Joseph hospital and then on to Harborview Medical Center for care, according to a press release from Bellingham Police Lt. Claudia Murphy.
Earlier, at approximately 11:04 a.m., officers responded to a robbery report at Haggen Foods store on Meridian Street. Two men stole bottles of liquor with an estimated value of $517.43, Murphy said.
The suspect who was later shot at the sporting goods store implied he had a gun and would use it on the Haggen employee if he continued to follow him, police reported. Both suspects left the store and got into a car and left. Haggen employees noted the license plate of the car, which was broadcast to other patrol officers.
Fourteen minutes later, officers were called to a robbery in progress with gunshots fired at Yeager’s Sporting Goods on Northwest Ave, Murphy said. Officers found one suspect on the floor with a gunshot wound to the chest being detained by store employees.
A second suspect from the Haggen robbery, a 41-year-old man, was contacted by police and interviewed about both incidents. The second suspect never entered Yeager’s, Murphy said, and will be investigated for his part in the robbery at Haggen. He was in need of medical attention for an issue unrelated to the events at Yeager’s, she added.
There is probable cause to arrest the 37-year-old suspect for first-degree attempted robbery, second-degree robbery and the attempted theft of a firearm, Murphy said. Further charges may be filed, she added, as he is a felon prohibited from possessing firearms and the car he was driving was stolen.
The Yeager’s employee was not injured, but feared for his life “as the suspect was gaining access to firearms and ammunition, pulled his concealed firearm and shot the suspect once in the chest,” Murphy said.
Bellingham Police detectives continue to investigate, Murphy said.
After the employees and customers left the store, a decision was made to keep it closed for the rest of the day, Simpson said. The store, at 3101 Northwest Ave., planned to reopen at 10 a.m. on Friday, Jan. 29.
“The Bellingham Police Department did a terrific job responding to the situation,” Simpson said, adding that they arrived on scene within a couple of minutes. “The safety and well-being of our employees and customers is our utmost concern, and we’re so appreciative of how they handled it.”
This story was originally published January 28, 2021 at 5:04 PM.
