Teen killed after pulling gun during attempted robbery

EVANSVILLE, Ind. —  An Evansville teen was killed in a late Monday night shooting that happened during an attempted robbery, police said.

The Vanderburgh County Coroner’s office confirmed that DeAndre Ellington, 18, died at an Evansville hospital at 10:59 p.m. after he was taken to the emergency department by ambulance. An autopsy is scheduled for 4:30 p.m. Tuesday, Coroner Steve Lockyear said.

According to records from Evansville-Vanderburgh Central Dispatch, a call of shots fired came at 10:07 p.m. in the 2200 block of North Fulton Avenue. When police arrived they found Ellington shot on the sidewalk.

In a recording of the 911 call obtained by Courier & Press, a man called dispatchers saying he heard gunshots and went outside. He said someone was shot and wounded but didn’t know who, and he was worried someone would come shoot up his house.

The caller was evading some questions from the dispatcher, who told emergency responders over police radio that the man was being “difficult.”

At one point in a recording of the radio traffic, an officer said there were multiple guns on the scene and that a black man was unconscious.

About two minutes later, police said they had one person in custody and were holding two others at gunpoint.

In a news release, police said Ellington had been shot and was unable to communicate with officers, who learned he had met with several people to sell a handgun. Police said witnesses told them Ellington pointed a handgun at the group and tried to rob them. One of the alleged intended robbery victims was armed with a handgun and fired several times in response to Ellington’s actions, police said.


Armed intruder shot and killed by gas station customer

SAN ANTONIO — An apparent robbery attempt at a northwest-side gas station ended with a masked man dead, San Antonio police said.

At around 6:30 Tuesday night, police were called to a gas station on Culebra Road near Loop 1604. According to police, a man showed a gun and appeared to threaten the clerk.

There were two customers in the store at the time and one of them saw the threat and shot the man, who died at the scene, police said. According to police, the would-be robber did not fire his weapon.
“They [the customers] took matters into their own hands, and were willing to make decisions and live with whatever consequences that came with that,” the officer at the scene said. “At the time if they felt that that was a threat that needed to be addressed… then those are decisions that could be seen as commendable, but a robbery did not happen as a result.”

At this time, it’s not clear if the customer who fired the deadly shot will face charges, police said.

“We absolutely wouldn’t [recommend this.] However, you take matters in your own hands,” police said. “In the state of Texas you can carry a weapon and you have the right to protect yourself and your property. While these were customers and not owners, they felt like this threat was active and they addressed it as such.”