Purcell, Oklahoma

From the Norman Transcript of May 3, 2007

Liquor store owner foils robbery attempt

A Purcell liquor store owner refused to comply when a man entered his store and told him to hand over his money Tuesday. Instead, the owner pulled out his gun and told the would-be robber to get out.

At about 4 p.m. Tuesday, a white male entered Butch's Cork and Bottle, 528 S. Green Ave. in Purcell, said owner Butch Kluth, 63.

The man demanded all of the money in the register, and Kluth said he replied, "F-- you," according to the police report.

"What do you mean, 'F-- you?' Give me all your money," the man responded, Kluth said in the report.

Then the man reached into his pants, "like he had a gun," Kluth said.

So Kluth retrieved his own Smith -- Wesson 357 and pointed it at the man, telling him to get out of the store, Kluth said.

The man made an attempt to grab the gun, but when he failed he ran out of the store, Kluth said.

Kluth then followed the man to a dark green Mustang parked on the south side of the liquor store, the report said.

Kluth fired one shot in an attempt to hit the man's tire, but the round struck the right front fender instead, the report said.

"I was a little feared for my life, but at that point I didn't think about it," Kluth said Wednesday afternoon in his store. He didn't bother to close the store after the incident, saying the attempted robbery didn't shake him up.

Police were dispatched on the report of an attempted robbery with shots fired at 4:11 p.m.

Wayne police caught up with the car in the 200 block of South Seventh Street. The suspect was ordered to exit the vehicle and was arrested for robbery in the first degree.

He identified himself as Jeremy Lloyd Cox, 32, of Ardmore. Kluth said he had never seen Cox before.

Cox was processed at the Purcell Police Department and then transferred to the McClain County Detention Center. He will be arraigned 1:30 p.m. today.

Kluth said he's been in business for only a year. He said he'd never expected to be robbed, but kept a firearm in the store just in case, because "things like that happen."

He said he'll keep his gun handy in the future, too.