Jewelry Store owner talks about shooting crooks
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (WSVN) -- A store owner says he was just trying to protect his family when he shot two men who tried to rob his jewelry store.
Hugo Villalta owns Bentley's Jewelry Store located on Oakland Park Boulevard, that two armed men tried to rob on May 9.
Around 11 a.m. Villalta says the two men entered his business posing as customers, even producing a watch. Moments later, he says things took a turn for the worse.
The two men pulled out guns, threatening to rob the jewelry store. In an attempt to protect his wife and son who were also in the store, Villalta took out his own gun and fired upon the two crooks.
Villalta fatally shot 18-year-old Damien James in the head and wounded 24-year-old Devaughn C. Heard, who managed to flee from the store in a silver sport utility vehicle. Police eventually caught up with him a short distance from the store where he surrendered to officials. Heard was taken to the Broward General Medical Center where he is still recovering.
Since the attempted robbery, Villalta says he has received a lot of support from the community. "They've sent cards, a lot of mail we've gotten and over 100 emails," he says. "Everything is positive, you know, and a lot of jewelers that are business people that have gone through similar things -- they've called, they've wrote, and you have to continue."
Police have charged Heard with the murder of James.
(Copyright 2007 by Sunbeam Television Corp. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
