COEUR D'ALENE, Idaho - A crook in Idaho picked the wrong barista stand Wednesday morning to rob.
Michelle Cornelsen got the 9mm handgun as a Christmas gift from her husband. She stashed it safely at the Sunshine Espresso stand she owns at Government Way and Rockwood Blvd. in Coeur d'Alene. She says she wants to be armed because her job can be dangerous. She ran stands in Seattle where baristas get held up frequently.
When a 17-year-old boy strolled up at 6:20 a.m., he pulled out a gun and said: "I'm sorry, I need you to put all your money in a bag."
But Cornelsen was confident and even felt sorry for him.
When another customer came up, the teen put the gun on the counter and covered it with his hand. That's when Cornelsen grabbed her gun, put it in his face and told him to leave.
He calmly walked away and minutes later, an off-duty Kootenai County sheriff's deputy and customer of Cornelsen's caught him and held him at gunpoint until other deputies arrived to take him into custody.
