The Virginian Pilot By Jane Harper 8/29/2019
It had already been a long and emotional day for the Virginia Beach man when he walked into a 7-Eleven store to buy a Big Gulp.
He’d just been involved in a heated argument with his stepfather, and police had been called to the house. After talking to officers, it took him more than an hour to walk back to his conversion van, which was parked near his work.
The vehicle wasn’t working at the time, but he’d been living in it for a few weeks. Once he got there, he realized his canteen was empty.
“I said, ‘Well, it looks like you’re going to 7-Eleven.’â€
When he arrived, the 37-year-old headed to the fountain drink machine, paying little attention to the din of chatter inside the South Newtown Road store. After pouring his favorite strawberry-melon flavored iced tea into a cup, he walked toward the cash register on the other side of the counter.
“I’m sipping on my Big Gulp, and this red beam cuts into my drink,†said the man, who agreed to tell The Virginian-Pilot what happened July 25 on the condition he not be identified.
“I look down and I’ve got a pink drink with something orangish-red in there. Then I look up and there are two guys pretty much standing on top of each other with two guns pointed in my face.â€
The gunmen, on what police say was the last stop of a spate of robberies around 2 a.m. that Thursday, had hoods pulled over their heads and bandannas covering their faces. The red spot in the man’s drink was a laser light from one of the guns aimed in his direction.
Still clutching his Big Gulp, the man followed orders to raise his hands and move to the side. Two other customers, a woman and a man, stood frozen in front of the cash register.
While one robber stuffed his pockets with money, the other leaned over the counter with his gun fixed on the store clerk.
More:
https://www.pilotonline.com/news/crime/vp-nw-shooter-interview-20190829-ufii37kspbd63oymnqbdgpcqga-story.html
