A diner shot a robber in a Texas taqueria and returned his fellow customers' money, police say

A customer at a Texas taqueria fatally shot a man who entered the restaurant and threatened patrons for their money, police said.   

Officers with the Houston Police Department  were dispatched to a restaurant, identified as The Ranchito #4 taqueria in multiple reports, after a reported shooting. Witnesses told officers that a man who was wearing a black ski mask and black gloves entered the restaurant and pointed what patrons believed was a gun as he demanded money from them, police said in a statement on Friday.   

One of the patrons “produced a gun of his own and shot the suspect multiple times,” police said in the Friday news release.

“The shooter collected the stolen money from the suspect and returned the money to other patrons.”

Paramedics later pronounced the victim dead.  

The Houston Police Department confirmed to Paste BN on Monday that the man who allegedly stole from the restaurant customers did not have an actual firearm, but he instead had a pretend weapon, such as a BB gun.  

Florida: TSA finds 4-foot boa constrictor inside woman's carry-on luggage at airport

Las Vegas: High school student, 16, dies after collapsing during flag football game

Police on Monday said the shooter, 46, has been questioned by homicide detectives. The shooting is being referred to a grand jury. 

Officials declined to name the shooter, since he has not been arrested or charged with a crime. 

Police on Sunday released photos of the man and his vehicle, which they described as a “1970s or ’80s model pickup truck with no bed.”  

The Harris County Institute of Forensic Sciences identified the shooting victim as Eric Eugene Washington. Police confirmed on Monday that Washington was 30 years old.