Pharmacist Shoots Armed Robber In North Suburbs
WAUCONDA, Ill. (STMW) - A north suburban pharmacist shot a knife-wielding man who attempted to rob the store of drugs Monday afternoon in Wauconda, police said.
Police responded at 1:49 p.m. to a 911 call of a robbery in progress at the Wauconda Pharmacy at 222 S. Main St. in Wauconda and found a male lying near the front entrance with a gunshot wound to the side, according to a Wauconda police release.
Guy Michael Contl, 31, of unidentified addresses in Indiana and Arkansas, entered the store armed with a large knife wearing a ski mask, forced his way into the pharmacists work area and demanded a large quantity of drugs, the release said.
After being given the drugs, a pharmacist and technician confronted Contl and overpowered him, the release said. The pharmacist ordered Contl to surrender, but he broke free and made a threatening advance toward the employees, the release said.
The pharmacist then fired more than one round and struck Contl with one large-caliber bullet, the release said. The pharmacist lawfully owns the weapon, is a registered gun owner and is allowed to have it in the store.
Several employees and two customers were in the store, but nobody else was injured, the release said.
Contl was taken taken to Advocate Condell Medical Center in Libertyville with life-threatening injuries, the release said. An update on his condition was not immediately available Monday night as he remained in surgery.
Police believe he is familiar with the Wauconda area and may have friends nearby.
Police have completed preliminary interviews and are reviewing a videotape that captured the incident, the release said.
