Arlington store clerks fight off attempted armed robbery

ARLINGTON, Texas - You saw this surveillance video first on FOX 4 News. Arlington police are now asking for the public's help to find the would-be robbers who were held off by two store clerks.

Police say they are glad no one was hurt but do not recommend anyone challenge armed gunmen. They hope the video helps generate tips to put the two bad guys behind bars.

Khurrum Monga says his son, Haris Monga, immediately noticed the two young men who'd walked into the store were overly dressed for the 100-degree heat on July 18. They claimed they had phones to sell, but pulled a gun instead and jumped the counter. Haris and his father fought back.

The second suspect in white pulled his gun too, which Khurrum boldly swatted away at one point.

“I was just fighting with him,” Kurrum recalled. “I don't know what happened. It just happens in a couple of seconds.”

One gunman took off, but Khurrum and Haris hung on to the other man until he ripped through his shirt to get away.

As for why they initially fought back, the Mongas say they thought the would-be robbers had fake guns. They've since learned the gun that was dropped and left behind was very real and even loaded.

“You do need to try to defend yourself in any way possible,” said Steven Bartolotta with the Arlington Police Department. “But this is not something we recommend because you cannot replace your life.”

Khurrum has only one explanation for why the gunman in white didn't shoot when his accomplice was ordering him too.

“He tells him, ‘Shoot them! Shoot them,’” he recalled. “But still, God saved us.”

Anyone with information is urged to contact the Arlington Police Department.