Veteran runs off a robber with his trusty .380 – gets suspended from work! (VIDEO)

RUTLAND, Vermont – “He walked up to the counter, laid the knife on it and said ‘Empty the register,’” says Don Pitaniello, a Vietnam veteran and store clerk.

“I knew his intentions as soon as he came in,” said Pitaniello. “When he told me to empty the register, I cocked my head and said ‘Really?'”

Security footage shows the knifeman wearing a hood and a bandana. As the brazen robber walked into the store, Pitaniello was already holding a .380-caliber handgun behind his back. When the criminal brandished his knife, Pitaniello brandished his gun.

“I told him he better get the (expletive) out of there,” said Pitaniello. The intruder fled on foot, and the hero clerk briefly followed him in order to tell police what direction the man was headed.

Pitaniello has now been suspended for violating the store’s prohibition on bringing firearms to work. But the veteran is confident that he did the right thing. “That store has been robbed eight or nine times and I always work nights,” he said. “I’m a firm believer in having a gun and not needing it rather than the other way around. I can always find a new job.”



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