A Pembroke Pines GameStop employee who was arrested after police said he fatally shot a shoplifter is speaking out. Derrick Guerrero was released on bond Thursday, more than a day after the shooting at the store claimed the man’s life.
A Pembroke Pines GameStop employee who was arrested after police said he fatally shot a shoplifter is speaking out.
Derrick Guerrero was released on bond Thursday, more than a day after the shooting at the store claimed the man's life.
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"I’m really sorry for the family. I didn’t mean for any of this to happen to the family. It wasn’t my intention," Guerrero told reporters.
With his head in his hands, Guerrero repeatedly apologized as he waited to be picked up from jail.
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"I'm extremely sorry for the family," he said.
Guerreo, 33, was arrested on a manslaughter charge in the Tuesday night shooting at the store at 11069 Pines Boulevard.
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Police said Guerrero was working in the store when he saw a man shoplifting. Guerrero confronted the man, who ran toward the front door with the merchandise, police said.
Investigators said Guerrero pulled a gun from his waistband and fired a single shot, hitting the man in the torso.
"At no time did the victim threaten Guerrero or display any type of weapon," police said in a news release.
The man later died of his injuries. Family members identified him as 21-year-old Chadrick Coats. His grandmother described him as a "good kid" and a sophomore at Florida Memorial University.
In court Wednesday, a defense attorney said Guerrero had been honorably discharged after serving in the Marines for 10 years, and was moving up in the ranks at GameStop while taking care of his family.
“He’s an assistant manager. He resides in Pembroke Pines with his wife and two daughters," the attorney said.
Police said Guerrero had been the victim in September of a robbery at the GameStop and had bought the gun for protection.
