Man armed with BB gun killed in robbery attempt
By KIMATHI LEWIS
Staff Writer
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A man armed with a BB gun died while he and his partner tried to rob a pair
of Charlotte businessmen Thursday outside a motel on Broad River Road,
police said.
The robbers didn't know these were ex-military officers, one of whom built
his career on teaching anti-terrorism skills to state officials, according
to newspaper reports.
Jonathan James Berry, 32, died outside the Best Inn at 1029 Briargate Circle
after the businessmen shot him three times in the chest and once in the
side, Richland County Coroner Frank Barron said.
Police charged Berry's partner, Richard Sean Harley, 32, of 1119 Shirlington
Road, with attempted armed robbery and conspiracy to commit armed robbery,
according to jail records. Harley was not injured.
Harley, who has history of stealing, driving and domestic violence offenses,
was being held in the Richland County jail on $50,000 bail, reports showed.
Richland County sheriff's spokesman Cpl. Chris Cowan said Thomas Bullins and
John Nettles will not be charged in the 1 a.m. shooting.
"They were lawfully carrying weapons," Cowan said. "They were well within
their rights."
The men did not know the guns aimed at them weren't real, Cowan said.
Bullins, reached at his North Carolina home late Thursday, said he did not
want to talk about the shooting.
"It was an unfortunate incident," Bullins said. "Right now we want to spend
some time with our families and put it behind us."
Bullins told investigators he and Nettles were leaving their room when Berry
approached what he thought was a handgun and raised it to Bullins' face.
Berry demanded money from Bullins, but Bullins grabbed Berry's forearm and
the two got into a struggle, officials said.
Bullins then reached into his pocket and pulled out a .22-caliber handgun,
firing one shot that hit Berry in the aorta, Barron said.
That turned out to be the fatal bullet, Barron said.
After the first shot was fired, Nettles came out of his room, officials
said.
Nettles fired from a .45 semiautomatic, hitting Berry three times in the
chest as he continued to struggle with Bullins, Barron said.
The men, who are also trained paramedics, performed CPR on Berry, but it was
too late, the coroner said.
The men went after Harley, who was nearby at the time of the holdup, but
later fled, Cowan said.
He was caught near the pool at the motel, officials said. They held him
until sheriff's deputies arrived.
After the men recovered the weapons from the thieves, they realized they
weren't real, Cowan said.
Sheriff Leon Lott said Bullins and Nettles were in Columbia to find out
about South Carolina laws governing security companies. They had meetings
Thursday at the State Law Enforcement Division and the police academy.
"They are ex-military Special Forces," Lott said. "They picked the wrong two
guys because they're trained to teach people how to handle exactly the kind
of situation they had last night."
Special Forces soldiers are carefully selected, specially trained, and
capable of extended operations in extremely remote and hostile territory.
Staff writer Clif LeBlanc contributed to this article.
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When women are disarmed, a rapist will never hear - Stop or I'll shoot!
Armed Citizens SAVE Lives!
<A HREF="http://www.wagc.com
http://sites.netscape.net/wagcga/homepage
Gun" TARGET=_blank>http://www.wagc.com
http://sites.netscape.net/wagcga/homepage
Gun</A> Control: The theory that a woman found dead in an alley, raped and strangled with her panty hose, is somehow morally superior to a
woman explaining to police how her attacker got that fatal bullet wound.
"Quemadmoeum gladis nemeinum occidit, occidentis telum
est" ("A sword is never a killer, it's a tool in the killer's hands")
Lucius Annaeus Seneca "the younger" ca. (4 BC - 65 AD)
, Art