A gas station clerk was charged with involuntary manslaughter in Detroit after he attempted to stop a shoplifter by locking the doors, causing the assailant to become increasingly agitated and pull out a gun, shooting three people in the gas station.

The assailant, Samuel McCray, became angry after his credit card was declined for a four dollar purchase and attempted to walk out with the items he was unable to pay for.

The clerk, 22-year-old Al-Hassan Aiyash, then locked the doors of the gas station to prevent him from leaving.

The shooting left two people injured and one dead, leading to Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy filing first-degree murder charges against McCray and involuntary manslaughter charges against Aiyash.

Assistant Prosecutor Maria Miller said that Aiyash’s actions were ‘grossly negligent’ and endangered customers at the shop.

Legal experts have disputed Miller and Worthy’s argument, saying that it will be difficult to prove that Aiyash is legally culpable for attempting to stop someone from stealing at the store.

The magistrate presiding over the case gave Aiyash a whopping $200,000 bond despite not committing violent acts against anyone involved, claiming that his ‘escalation’ of the incident made him a risk to the community.

Still, other attorneys have disputed that the prosecution can win.

“I hate to say who is gonna win or lose, but I would say it’s going to be very difficult for the prosecution.” Said Detroit attorney Ray Richards.

Detroit News Reports–

A gas station clerk has been charged with involuntary manslaughter in connection with the shooting death of a customer by another customer, an unusual development that prompted legal experts to debate the strength of the case filed by Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy.

The 22-year-old clerk, Al-Hassan Aiyash, is being held in the Wayne County Jail on $200,000 bond after he locked customers inside of a gas station earlier this month to prevent a possible shoplifter from leaving, escalating a situation that ended when three customers were shot, one fatally, prosecutors said at a Friday arraignment.

Wayne County Assistant Prosecutor Anna Posigian said Aiyash locked three innocent customers inside of the Mobil gas station in the 12800 block of West McNichols in Detroit around 3 a.m

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