Person identified who was fatally shot by security guard at Kroger
A line-cutting dispute inside a Kroger Thursday night escalated into a robbery attempt with one man being shot to death by a security guard.
The incident began around 10 p.m. inside the Kroger, 1745 Morse Road, with one or more people accusing another of cutting in line, Columbus police detective Chris Journey said.
"It was basically between customers and a security guard asked them to leave," Journey said. "It was basically about cutting in line ... about being impatient."
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Within about 10 minutes, one of the individuals came back and continued to argue with others in the parking lot and attempted to rob another at gunpoint, "kind of like a retaliation," Journey said.
The incident outside erupted in gunfire with multiple rounds exchanged, Journey said. No one was injured.
That's when the private security guard noticed and went outside.
"He was paying attention and came outside to see what was happening and he fired his weapon."
Journey said the guard, who is not being named, "felt threatened for his life."
In a media release sent Friday afternoon, Columbus police identified the robbery suspect who was shot by the guard as Juan M. J. Cuarenta.
When police arrived on the scene, they found Cuarenta suffering from a gunshot wound and another man in the parking lot who told officers that he had just been robbed at gunpoint by two suspects, one of whom was Cuarenta.
Cuarenta was transported in critical condition to OhioHealth Riverside Methodist Hospital, where he was pronounced dead shortly after arriving at around 11:12 p.m.
The second suspect fled the scene on foot and remains unidentified, according to Columbus police.
Police have interviewed multiple witnesses, most with consistent stories, Journey said. Weapons were recovered in the parking lot.
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Police have not said if charges will be filed in connection to the shooting or robbery attempt. Police are seeking others involved. But no arrests have been made.
Several Kroger spokespersons did not return calls and emails asking for comment. The Morse Road store re-opened early Friday. A worker who answered the phone said there are two "new" armed security officers at the store and that it is safe.
This is the second shooting death of a customer by a Kroger security guard this year.
In January, Paris Royal, 26, of the city's Northeast Side, died after being shot by an armed guard inside the Kroger store at 3600 Soldano Blvd., near Wilson Road in the Consumer Square West shopping center on the West Side.
Columbus police said the guard who was never charged nor named, had an altercation with a woman inside and that Royal went into the store and began fighting with the security guard, police said. Shots were fired and Royal was struck and later died.
Asked about lethal gunfire at businesses intended to sustain life, not end it, Journey said that such cases are not the norm.
"Overall, Columbus is safe and it's safe to shop at Kroger," Journey said. "Unfortunately, you have these rare instances throughout the nation (involving guns).
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This is Columbus' 69th homicide.
Anyone with information regarding this incident is asked to call the Columbus Police Homicide Unit at (614) 645-4730 or Central Ohio Crime Stoppers at (614) 461-TIPS (8477).
dnarciso@dispatch.com
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Line-cutting incident at Kroger leads to deadly shootout
