A video went viral showing two robbers holding up a convenience store. They’re soon confronted by an armed security guard who ends the confrontation quick, fast, and in a hurry. The video has been shown numerous times, but since it doesn’t seem to get old, here it is again.

While the video was attributed to be a robbery at a 7-Eleven in New Jersey, it now appears the robbery took place in Compton, CA on Tuesday.

The two suspects attempted to hold up the convenience store. One jumps over the counter and draws what appears to be a firearm. The clerk raises his hands and the second suspect goes over the counter as well.

Then an armed security guard enters and fires his weapon at the suspects.

At this point, the two master criminals give up, calling out that their guns are fake.

“Oh well,” the guard responds. “Mine is real.”

You just can’t help but feel a little giddy inside at the exchange. After all, the threat was still very real so far as anyone could tell at the time. Further, I wouldn’t take a crook’s word for a gun being fake until I had the chance to check it out myself, and at no point would I be willing to allow myself to become distracted so I can verify their claims.

However, this is a prime example of the phrase, “Play stupid games, win stupid prizes.”

If you’re going to hold up a store with a fake gun, it’s important you understand that if it’s realistic enough to work for a holdup, it’s realistic enough to get you shot over it.

The reason toy guns now have orange ends on the barrels was because there were several cases where police had mistaken toy guns for real ones. Kids who had otherwise done nothing wrong were shot, and people were horrified.

Yet when a criminal modifies a toy gun to be realistic enough to convince a store clerk that their life is in danger if they fail to comply, that criminal is taking his own life in his hands. After all, if the clerk is in fear of his life and he’s armed, he’s justified to use lethal force in many states. It won’t matter that the gun was fake. All that will matter is that a reasonable man would be in fear of his life.

Period.

So yeah, a lot of us are getting a good laugh over this one. We’re enjoying someone getting an object lesson in how stupidity sometimes hurts. Frankly, most of us love seeing criminals get what they deserve, and this is a great example.

The fact that we get an almost action movie-like line about his gun being a real one only makes it that much better. I’m just glad the clerk and guard made it through the ordeal just fine. May the two punks get to enjoy their time on the taxpayer dime. Let it be a lesson that crime doesn’t really pay.

Warning: Graphic footage and language

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y0-XQBxjbnM