Belt Buckle Saves Man From Bullet in Philadelphia Shootout
Store clerk hit by gunfire in shootout saved by metal belt buckle.
April 11, 2013— -- The metal on his belt buckle was what saved a Philadelphia store clerk from a stray bullet ricocheting from a shootout that erupted in front of the store where he was working, police said.
When gunfire broke out just before 4 p.m. Wednesday, Bienvenido Reynoso said he quickly realized what was happening outside and dropped to the floor.
But when a bullet entered the store and struck Reynoso's belt, it became lodged in the buckle, which kept Reynoso from getting hit.
Moments after he dropped to the floor, a bullet hit a pound cake that had been near where he was standing.
"I went outside and heard the shots and I hit the floor," Reynoso told ABC station WPVI. "I didn't feel nothing. ... I was checking out my body."
Reynoso said he was "born again" after the close call.
One man involved in the shooting was hit by a bullet and taken to a local hospital with a gunshot wound to the abdomen, according to the Philadelphia Police Department.
Two police officers chased a suspect, Edward Lyons, 24, who they took into custody. He is charged with attempted murder and aggravated assault.