Well, this is one armed robber who won’t be causing any more trouble in Georgia, except maybe for the mortician.

With a would-be robber’s shotgun barrel pointed at his head, a DeKalb County smoke shop employee pulled his own weapon and killed his assailant, police said.

DeKalb police spokesman Capt. Steven Fore said the incident occurred around 1 p.m. Thursday at the Paradise Island Smoke Shop on Snapfinger Road near Lithonia. Two unidentified men entered the store, Fore said, and one asked to see an item on a shelf behind the lone employee present.

While the employee was turned around, the suspect reportedly put a shotgun to the back of his head.

Fore said the employee then “turned around slowly, reached up and grabbed the gun barrel.”

Once the shotgun was pointed away from his head, the employee produced his own firearm and fired several shots at the armed suspect.

The robber made the fatal mistake of getting too close to the employee, giving the clerk the chance to control and redirect the muzzle. Once he did, the clerk simply drew his own weapon—presumably a concealed handgun—and shot the attacker multiple times at point blank range.

While none of us will (I hope) never go down the path of criminality, the armed robber’s mistake us a great example of why distance is your friend, and why weapons retention training is important.