KANSAS CITY, Mo. — “Haroon is such a nice guy. Usually he goes out of his way to help people,” said Michael Mahmood, co-owner of a gas station and convenience store near East Gregory and Cleveland in Kansas City, Mo.
Mahmood is talking about 33-year-old Haroon Yousef, a part-time worker who does odd jobs at the tiny business. Friends say Wednesday afternoon Yousef was in the business when a woman stormed inside screaming someone had just stole her purse.
“She said somebody is trying to rob her and so he [Yousef] suddenly just went outside to see what’s going on, ” says Mahmood.
Investigators say when Haroon Yousef chased 19-year-old Murad Jones to try to get the woman’s purse back, the two men struggled before Jones fired six gunshots.
Michael Mahmood says his friend and part-time employee was hit three times.
“He tried to get the purse back from him and they kind of tangled with each other and fell on the ground,”: Mahmood told Fox 4’s Robert Townsend during an interview Thursday afternoon.
“Jones slipped and fell in the rain and he pulled out his gun an shot Yousef three times, all go tthrough his stomach, and one bullet was very close to his heart,” says Mahmood.
Ahmed Nawaz is also a co-owner of the business. He, too, is extremely grateful the good samaritan, whose wife is eight months pregnant, survived his close call.
“She was scared for her husband at first, but on the other hand, she was happy that he was trying to help the woman. Yousef’s a good guy, ” says Nawaz.
Jones is jailed on several charges including robbery, assault and armed criminal action.