The former Marine who stopped an armed robbery inside an Arizona gas station last month was recently honored with the Yuma County Sheriff's Office Citizen’s Valor Award.
The veteran, James Kilcer, immediately took action, disarming one of the three suspects who was pointing his weapon at the cashier and frightening away the two others with him.
Don’t mess with Marines: US Vet stops armed robbery in Arizona store with bag of “Gatorades and a snack”
— The RAGE X (@theragex) October 22, 2021
A sheriff’s office in Arizona has released a video of a Marine Corps veteran - taking down suspected gun-wielding criminals.#USA pic.twitter.com/Zj46RylOBp
“Sh*t needed to be done,” he said, according to Marine Corps Times. “I kind of saw what was coming my way and just, you know, I wasn’t gonna sit around and cry about it. And I just waited until he took that one extra step and — boom! — fu**ing hit him and just instinct kicked in.”
While the two unarmed suspects who ran off are still at large, the suspect Kilcer confronted was caught and booked.
The department said the award presented to Kilcer is for “extraordinary heroism and exceptional courage while voluntarily coming to the aid of another citizen during an incident involving criminal activity at extreme, life threatening, personal risk in an attempt to save or protect human life.”
In accepting the award, which is the highest honor "for citizens whose actions warrant recognition," Kilcer showed up in a shirt and hat that made quite the statement.
Marine who stopped the armed robbery in Yuma, Arizona last week. #letsgoBranden pic.twitter.com/HoU2A4i2TS
— Keean Bexte (@TheRealKeean) October 27, 2021
"This is gold," one Twitter user commented. "What a legend," another said.