Detroit bank robber shot by concealed pistol licensed customer

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Customer who shot Warren bank robber emptied gun
By Christina Hall, Detroit Free Press

Ruben Kendrick was coming out of a restroom at Citizens Bank in Warren when a suspected robber pulled out a handgun and pointed it at him in the lobby.

The robber pushed Kendrick, a customer, to a corner and demanded money from a teller, getting cash. Kendrick looked over his shoulder, Warren police said, and got a round in the eight-bullet chamber of his gun.

Then, Warren Mayor Jim Fouts said, Kendrick fired his Smith & Wesson M&P 9 mm shield, emptying it and hitting the suspected robber three times, once in each arm and a leg.

“The good guy won out over the bad guy,” Fouts said less than 24 hours after the heist and shooting Monday at the bank near 9 Mile and Van Dyke.

The suspected robber – who Fouts could not identify by name because he had not been charged – was being treated at Detroit hospital for his injuries. Warren police said the suspected robber is 43 years old with an Ypsilanti address and a criminal record.

Fouts said the suspected robber carried a Colt Mark 4 that was loaded with eight bullets with one in the chamber. He did not fire any shots, police said.

However, Fouts said a bullet apparently from Kendrick’s gun busted glass out of a bank window. Kendrick, 60, of Warren has a concealed pistol license, Fouts said. Kendrick could not be reached today.

Fouts said the suspected robber got about $11,000 from the bank, with all but about $2,000 recovered. The man staggered out of the bank and fell, dropping the money, after the shooting. He then was taken into custody.

Fouts said the FBI is handling the bank robbery, of which surveillance video has not been released. Warren police are investigating the shooting and the matter will be forwarded to the Macomb County Prosecutor’s Office for review.

Fouts said one of the important aspects of the situation was that no one else was hurt and the suspected robber was not fatally injured. He said it appears Kendrick was justified in his actions but he is awaiting a final conclusion from authorities.

Overall, Fouts said, the situation ended “pretty good,” and Kendrick may have saved other people from getting hurt. But Fouts added: “We don’t want vigilante justice.”

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