Two former Starbucks employees were captured on video fending off armed robbers before their firings.
Michael Harris and Devin Jones-Ransom were seen on surveillance footage bravely confronting would-be robbers who entered their store near the campus of St. Louis University in Midtown in December 2023. Two hooded men entered the building, and one aimed what appeared to be a firearm at the employees. The man brandishing the weapon shoved a female employee as he rushed toward the cash register, which is when Harris began tapping on the screen in an attempt to get the men some cash so they would leave the store peacefully.
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“I was scared but also calm at the moment because I was just like whatever we could do to just get them out of here would be perfect,” he told Fox 2 News.
Harris also said that he was struck with the gun, causing him to fear that he was in danger of being shot.
“After that point, my vision went black. I was like, I’m about to get shot,” he recalled, adding that “It was definitely a life-or-death situation in my eyes.”
When Jones-Ransom saw the man lower his gun, he took his chance to accost the robber and realized the weapon was a fake.
“The trigger broke off when they hit (the co-worker) with it,” Harris said. “He announced that it was a fake gun like right as he got it off of them and that’s when we jumped and like started to fight them a little bit more.”
The suspects were eventually caught and convicted, but unfortunately, this isn’t a story with a happy ending. Both employees were fired shortly after the incident.
“They said, ‘This is Starbucks. We are terminating you, effective immediately,’” Harris revealed.
Attorney Ryan Krupp, hired by Harris, argued that people have a “right to self-preservation.”
“You have the right to make sure that you and your family to not be physically harmed – full stop,” he added. “All it’s going to do is dissuade people potentially from protecting their own lives when they may need it the most. That is not a world that we can live in.”
Starbucks shared a statement with the outlet on Friday.
“In high-stress situations like this, our priority is ensuring the safety of everyone in our stores. We were deeply disturbed by this frightening incident and are grateful that our partners and customers were not more seriously injured at the time,” the corporate comments explain. “Our training and protocols are designed to support partner safety by emphasizing de-escalation, helping to reduce the risk of an already volatile situation intensifying. All partners are trained at hire and annually on these practices, including robbery scenarios that reinforce complying with demands and avoiding actions that could increase risk.”
“While we recognize how intense and unpredictable these moments can be, adherence to these protocols is essential to help protect both partners and customers,” they said, justifying the terminations.
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Sierra Marlee is a millennial whose hunger for the truth in a world of fake news has led her to write. Marlee also contributes to BizPac Review.
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