Army veteran fired from CVS for stopping robbery

An Army veteran from Beltsville, MD, was fired on the spot for attempting to foil a robbery.

According to Fox 5, Joe Morici was conducting managerial duties as normal at his CVS chain in Beltsville last Friday when two men stormed the pharmacy. Jumping on the counter, they demanded the pharmacist open the safe.

Morici immediately ran downstairs from his office, ordering the cashiers to call the police.

“My main concern (was) just everyone’s safety in the building,” Morici said. “I reacted out of instinct.”

Morici confronted the two robbers, one of which was armed with a screwdriver. As he intersected them in an aisle, one of the men attempted to stab Morici, though the attack was blocked.

With the front door locked, Morici found himself locked in hand to hand combat with the thieves, ultimately disarming them.

Despite gaining the upper hand, the suspects got away.

Shortly after the altercation, Morici’s supervisor arrived on the scene, firing Morici on the spot. Having moved to Beltsville for the sole purpose of taking the manager position, Morici felt betrayed.

“It’s not a good feeling,” Morici said. “I’ve never been let go from a position– especially something like that.”

Despite the loss, the Afghanistan war veteran with 7 years of service was quick on his feet when it came to looking for a new line of work. When police arrived on the scene, Morici asked if they were hiring. Since that fateful day, Morici has reportedly applied for a position with the Prince George’s County Police Department.

CVS released the following statement concerning the termination of Morici.

“In the unfortunate event of a robbery at one of our stores, the safety and well-being of our customers and employees is always our highest priority. We do not comment on specific security procedures or policies as we do not want to undermine them.”

This robbery comes hot on the heels of an incident that occurred last month, when a Ventura, CA store was robbed, leaving two hospitalized.

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