27, two months after suffering a stroke.Ĭraig Cope’s death was confirmed by the market, Norco City Councilman Kevin Bash and the Riverside County District Attorney’s Office, which is prosecuting the four men charged in the case.Īn 80-year-old Norco market owner whose videotaped shooting of a would-be robber in July made national headlines and spawned a get-tough slogan to commemorate the confrontation, died Tuesday, Dec. I’m sorry I am without words right now but I promised to not leave you in the dark,” an unnamed employee of the Norco Market & Liquor posted on the store’s Facebook page. The employee said a memorial service would be held at the store on an unspecified date.Ĭope had a stroke on Oct. 18 that left him unable to speak, according to another of the store’s Facebook posts. 14 said Cope had not made any progress.Ĭope died at his home, said Amy McKenzie, a spokeswoman for the district attorney’s office.Īt about 2:47 a.m. on July 31, Cope, who was doing paperwork at the Sixth Street store, watched on surveillance video as a car rolled up occupied by four people wearing masks and gloves and carrying guns. “He shot my arm off!” one apparent robber is heard saying on surveillance video. The suspected robbers ran out of the store, climbed into the SUV and sped off.
They were later arrested when they showed up at a hospital.
In Norco, where residents value their Second Amendment rights as much as their horses, Cope was considered a hero.Ī local entrepreneur sold T-shirts and sweatshirts bearing the phrase “Don’t Mess With Norco - We’ll Shoot Your Arm Off.” Even Sheriff Chad Bianco, who praised Cope for his calm and quick thinking while protecting himself, purchased one.