A Home Depot loss prevention employee was tragically shot and killed on Tuesday in Pleasanton, California, while attempting to apprehend a shoplifter. Authorities have identified the victim as 26-year-old Blake Mohs, a respected member of the community.
According to the Pleasanton Police Department, during their investigation, detectives discovered that Mohs confronted a female shoplifter who then resisted and shot him. The suspect, 32-year-old Benicia Knapps, fled to a waiting getaway car driven by 31-year-old David Guillory. Knapps’s two-year-old child was also present in the vehicle.
An abandoned handgun was found at a nearby intersection, and the Alameda County Sheriff’s Department apprehended both suspects in Oakland approximately 15 minutes after the shooting. The child has since been placed in the care of a relative.
Following his arrest, Guillory was booked into Santa Rita County Jail. Knapps is currently receiving medical treatment for injuries sustained during the robbery and will be booked into the same jail upon her release, according to Pleasanton Police Lt. Erik Silacci. Both suspects face multiple charges, including murder, robbery, child endangerment, and conspiracy.
Additional charges may be filed as the investigation progresses.
Mohs was transported to a hospital, where he later succumbed to his injuries. In a statement to CBS News, Home Depot expressed their heartbreak over the senseless tragedy.