Riccardo Crossland used a pellet gun to rob a man legally carrying a real gun
outside a Bridgeton motel Tuesday morning and ended up shot, police said.
Crossland went off to a hospital with wounds of the hand and leg; the victim
went on his way with the congratulations of police.
"Here was a robbery where we have a good ending for once," said Bridgeton
Police Major Don Steinman, who said the shooting was clearly self-defense.
The 23-year-old victim holds a concealed-carry permit from his home state of
Florida, which is honored in Missouri, officials said.
"He had his gun aimed at my face," the robbery victim said in an interview
granted on the condition that his name and hometown not be used. "I definitely
thought he was going to shoot me, so I started firing."
Crossland's weapon turned out to be a pellet gun that resembled a .45-caliber
handgun, police said. The victim had a real .45 in his waistband.
Crossland, 39, of the 7100 block of Beulah Avenue in Jennings, was taken to
DePaul Health Center, police said, for treatment of his wounds, which were not
considered life-threatening. He was charged with first-degree robbery and armed
criminal action.
Police said Crossland is on probation for a drug-related offense, and has
convictions for robbery, burglary, stealing and drug-related crimes.
The victim gave this account:
He had stayed several days at the Motel 6, near Interstate 270 and St. Charles
Rock Road, while looking at a race car engine to buy from a man in St. Louis.
About 3 a.m. Tuesday, he took his pit bull on an errand for food. Just outside
the motel, he encountered two men who asked questions about the dog before one
of them pulled out what looked like a gun and announced a holdup.
"The one guy started to pat me down, and I didn't want him to find my gun, so I
was handing them over everything I could," the victim said. "I was just waiting
for the right opportunity to get my gun."
The robbers then started to depart with the man's wallet, necklace, ring and
cash.
"The guy with the gun was walking away with the gun at his side, but then he
turned around and aimed it at my face," the victim said. "I definitely thought
he was going to shoot me, so I pulled my gun out and started firing."
He fired seven shots and the pair fled.
Crossland was found about a quarter of a mile away, hiding on a parking lot in
the 12900 block of St. Charles Rock Road, police said. The accomplice was not
caught.
The victim said he had the concealed-carry permit for two years but had never
used the weapon. Missouri has no tracking system for cases in which people with
concealed-carry permits use their weapons.
bbryan@post-dispatch.com | 314-340-8950
