No Charges For Customer Who Shot Brothers During Botched Robbery

Bucks County District Attorney Matt Weintraub announced Wednesday afternoon that his office would not be filing charges against a customer who shot two brothers who tried to rob Porfirio’s II Pizza in the Skyline Shopping Center in Middletown’s Levittown section Tuesday night.

Weintraub, who spoke to reporters from his office in Doylestown, said the 35-year-old customer did have an expired concealed carry permit for his Glock .45 handgun but will not be charged after prosecutors looked at the totality of the situation.

Authorities confirm to LevittownNow.com that Shawn Rose, 24, was the robber who was shot dead in the torso by the customer and his brother, Justin Rose, 22, was struck by a bullet in the neck and possibly the shoulder. Shawn Rose was pronounced dead at the scene and Justin Rose remained in critical but grave condition at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital in Philadelphia as of Wednesday afternoon.

RELATED: Pizza Shop Owner Opens Up About Shooting

The Rose brothers, who have Levittown-area connections, walked in the store around 9:50 p.m. and both produced what appeared to be handguns but were later determined by police to be pellet guns. An employee was in the front of the shop on the corner of Veterans Highway (Route 413) and Trenton Road, a cook was in the back and the customer was standing waiting for their takeout order when the shooting happened.

“Give us all your sh-t,” the brothers demanded.

During the robbery attempt, the brothers used their guns to threaten and pistol-whip the customer and pizza shop employees, according to Weintraub.

Shawn Rose briefly looked away from the customer and the citizen produced his Glock .45 from under his coat and shot the would-be robbers, the district attorney said.

The Rose brothers were wearing dark clothing, surgical gloves and masks at the time of the attempted robbery, authorities said.

Investigators reviewed surveillance video and talked to witnesses as part of their investigation. The district attorney did not wish to release whether detectives had spoken to Justin Rose.

The customer who shot the Rose brothers was properly trained, Weintraub said. A source told LevittownNow.com that the customer did have previous military training and was knowledgeable on how to properly handle a firearm.  

Weintraub said Middletown police and Bucks County Detectives are continuing to investigate the shooting but he hopes to “exonerate [the customer] of any criminal wrongdoing.” However,  Weintraub noted he did not want the incident to promote “vigilante justice.”

Middletown police Chief Joseph Bartorilla late Tuesday night said that he would not call the man a “hero” and noted that someone was dead but said the customer appeared to have done what was needed to protect himself.

“Was the shooter a hero?” Weintraub asked out loud. “He was to the pizza man.”