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MIDVALE — A smoke shop clerk was in serious condition after he was stabbed in the chest by a female robber.
The incident occurred around 7 p.m. at Smokin Joe's Discount Tobacco Store at 7720 South and 175 West. Midvale Police Sgt. Torin Chambers said the female entered the store, demanded two cartons of cigarettes and asked the clerk to open the register and give her all the cash inside.
The clerk had difficulty opening the register, Chambers said, and began fighting with the robber. During that fight he was stabbed with a large hunting knife.
"It was a pretty deep wound," Chambers said.
After being stabbed, the clerk continued to fight off the woman and was able to Taser her, but she was not subdued.
That's when William Henderson came into the shop and witnessed the incident. He came to the clerk's aid, tackling the would-be robber to the ground.
"I basically jumped on the woman with the clerk to pin her down, just to help him out, because he was struggling," Henderson said.
The clerk and Henderson were able to wrestle the knife away from the woman, call 911 and hold her to the ground until police arrived.
Henderson said the clerk had a hole in his chest about the size of a silver dollar. He said when police arrived, the clerk rolled onto the ground injured and exhausted.
"I was trying to tell the clerk to not talk as much. And we just basically waited until the cops showed up and the ambulance took him away," Henderson said.
Police arrested Robin Burnette, 46, and booked her into the Salt Lake County Jail. She faces two felony charges, one for attempted murder and the other aggravated robbery.
"We never want you to fight them," Chambers said. "Do what they want, get them out of the store as quick as you can."
Written by Benjamin Wood with contributions from Shara Park.
