Good Samaritan shot while trying to stop robbery in Oakland's Chinatown
OAKLAND, Calif. - A good Samaritan was shot and wounded while trying to stop a robbery in Oakland's Chinatown.
The shooting happened near 8th and Franklin streets at about 2 p.m. Saturday.
Video shows two armed men in hoodies trying to rob two women of their purses. That's when two men tried to intervene and stop the suspects.
Within moments, shots rang out.
One of the Good Samaritans was shot and wounded and crumpled to the ground.
One of the robbers is seen on video jogging to a double-parked Honda Accord. The second man trying to help is pistol-whipped and gets into a tug-of-war over a purse with the other assailant.
Humble Good Samaritan shot during attempted Oakland Chinatown robbery
A 27-year-old man tells KTVU he wanted to distract robbers when he intervened in an Oakland Chinatown robbery attempt over the weekend. The Good Samaritan, who only goes by Mr. Li, ended up getting shot. He is okay and was released from the hospital. He said he only wanted to help someone in need.
The 27-year-old man who was shot told KTVU he wanted to distract the robbers. He wanted to be known only as Mr. Li.
"I really wanted to try to de-escalate the situation," Li said.
He was shot in the armpit and right leg and has since been released from the hospital.
"I wouldn't call myself a hero. They can call me hero if they want," Li said. "I just consider myself as trying to help someone in need. I'm pretty sure that they really needed help."
Others, however, believe Li was heroic.
"Many of us, we feel strongly, that this brave young man was willing to risk his life. These are the heroes," said Carl Chan, president of the Oakland Chinese Chamber of Commerce.
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Chan said criminals are being emboldened by the revolving door of the criminal justice system.
"The whole problem is not about the police. It's about after being caught. They will be released, if not the same day, probably the next morning," Chan said.
The busy intersection where the crime happened is just a few blocks from Oakland police headquarters.
In a separate incident that was also captured on video on July 12, two Asian women were robbed. Video shows two men getting out of a Mercedes before robbing the women of their purses and taking off. In frustration, a witness threw a stool at the Mercedes.
Chan was himself attacked near 8th and Broadway back in April. He took pictures of his alleged attacker, parolee James Lee Ramsey, who remains in jail without bail after being charged by prosecutors with assault and a hate crime.