UPDATE: Video of AR15 Theft, Gunfight at Market (Not Open Carry)

U.S.A. –-(AmmoLand.com)-— Video footage has been released about the robbery of the AR15-type firearm stolen at Clay’s Wellston Food Market on May 27, 2022, at about 14:48 p.m.

Confused early reporting lead to a less than clear article published on AmmoLand.  Early reporting claimed the man carrying the AR15 firearm was “open carrying”. The video does not support that claim.

Link to video on Fox2now.com also here.

Much is missing from the video shown by Fox2now.com.

The video release was to Fox2now.com. The video editing is confusing, and time stamps are often absent. This correspondent has been able to puzzle out the chain of events with a fair amount of clarity.

A white Ford Focus arrives at Clay’s Wellston Food Market at about 14:40. It backs into a parking spot in front of the store. (not shown until the end of Fox2now.com video)  An associate of the man who is later shown carrying an AR15 gets out of the car and enters the store at about 14:41.

The temperature at 2:40 is about 63 degrees, so jackets are not unusual.

The AR15 Man, with the black, white, and red jacket, gets out of the car and enters the store at about 14:44. The AR15 firearm is not visible. In the entrance him from the store, he briefly opens his jacket, flashing the AR15-type firearm slung across his chest, from 14:44:02 to 14:44:04, a total of two or three seconds.

From the captured image, the barrel of the firearm is close to 8.5 inches long. The distance from the front of the magazine well to the front of the flash hider is about 4.2 magazine widths in the image. A magazine is about 2.52 inches wide.

From magwell to muzzle calculates to about 10.58 inches. The measured distance from a sample AR15 pistol from Flashhider to magwell with an 8.5-inch barrel is 10.75 inches. Given the difficulty of measuring a fuzzy image, it is a good match.

The firearm is either a short-barreled rifle requiring a National Firearms Act (NFA) tax stamp or an AR15-type pistol with a pistol brace attached.

The firearm has an optical sight and does not appear to have a front sight. What appears to be a 30-round magazine is in the magazine well.

The pistol/short barreled rifle is slung from the right shoulder to the left waist.

Before he enters the store property, AR15 Man closes his jacket to conceal the AR15-type firearm.

The AR15 is exposed from 14:44:02 to 14:44:04 on the video. Booker may have noticed the AR15 at this time, perhaps on a monitor. Booker approached the AR15 Man in the store and probably confirmed the firearm’s presence.

The AR15 Man and his associate appear to leave at about 14:47. The associate leaves first. In the image below, the robbery suspect, Booker, is in between the associate, who is approaching the left rear door of the Ford Focus, and the AR15 Man.

Booker follows the AR15 Man, and puts a pistol to his head near the right rear corner of the Ford Focus. He pushes the AR15 Man forward and forces him to take off his jacket and give up the AR15 firearm. The jacket is not seen after this.

The robbery suspect/ Booker retreats around the back of the Ford as AR15 Man ducks down and opens the right front door. The jacket appears to have been tossed into the front seat of the Ford Focus.

AR15 Man comes up and starts shooting over the top of the Ford with a pistol. He appears to be using his sights.

As the AR15 Man, sans jacket continues firing, the Ford Focus with his two associates pulls out into Page Avenue and turns left, pursuing the robbery suspect/ Booker.

While not shown in the video clips, it is inferred the two associates shoot at the robbery suspect/ Booker while the AR15 Man takes cover behind the tan Jeep. Booker is apparently wounded, and retreats back toward Clay’s Wellton Grocery.

He is crawling in the walkway into the Clay’s Wellston Food Market when AR15 Man takes him under aimed fire again.

AR15 Man advances and fires several more aimed shots at Booker as Booker approaches/enters the store.

Booker makes it into the Clay’s Wellston Food Market entrance and attempts to work the AR15 firearm but fails. He appears to be left-handed and picks up the two-tone semi-automatic pistol he laid on the floor. In the image, the bright line below Booker’s left forearm is the slide of the pistol.

The last sequence of video we see is AR15 man sprinting to the Ford Focus and his two associates on Page Avenue .

Everything was over by 14:51:00.

Earlier reporting indicated the AR15 firearm was retrieved by either the AR15 Man or an associate. If this occurred, it is not seen in the video shown to us by Fox2now.com.

Opinion:

AR15 Man and associates look like a practiced armed robbery team targeting Clay’s Wellston Food Market. They back into the parking spot and enter at different times. It is likely AR15 Man did not know he was being recorded as he flashed the AR15. Once inside, something did not smell right to the team, and they decided to pass on the robbery. Local talent Bobby Booker had noticed the AR15 firearm and decided he had an opportunity to steal it in an armed robbery.

Booker seems to have been oblivious he was attacking one man of an armed team of three.

The team took fast action, bracketed Booker, took him out, then departed before authorities could arrive. Smart money says the Ford Focus was recently stolen.

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About Dean Weingarten:

Dean Weingarten has been a peace officer a military officer, was on the University of Wisconsin Pistol Team for four years and was first certified to teach firearms safety in 1973. He taught the Arizona concealed carry course for fifteen years until the goal of Constitutional Carry was attained. He has meteorology and mining engineering degrees and retired from the Department of Defense after a 30-year career in Army Research, Development, Testing, and Evaluation.