VIDEO: Armed robber misfires gun at clerk during robbery

BOYLE HEIGHTS, Calif. (FOX 11) - Detectives are searching for a robbery suspect who they believe also came close to killing a Boyle Heights Metro PCS employee.

"He walked right in and pulled the trigger - the video was very scary to watch," says LAPD officer Steven Juarez.

Surveillance video shows a hooded robbery suspect hold up his gun...and tries shooting a woman inside a Boyle Heights Metro PCS store Saturday afternoon.

"It appears in the video he's shocked by the malfunction," said Juarez.

LAPD say a gun misfire is what saved the young workers life.

"It surprised all of us who watched it. Because usually most robbers go in to take the money and flee. This one appears to be totally different. We don't know why he did what he did," said Juarez.

Police say the man continued with the robbery, getting away with hundreds of dollars.

Video shows the employee hold up the cash register, fill a bag full of money, ducks when the man holds up the gun again then continues filling the bag. Nearby store clerk Linda Him spoke to the woman afterward.

"She was just repeating how she saw her life flash between her eyes and she can't take this anymore. This is not what she expected to put her life on the line for," says Him.

Police said the woman was able to help usher a family inside the store with two young kids into a back closet.
And then just like that, the man was out of the store too ...all in less than a minute.

"She was afraid she wouldn't have another day to see her husband or her kid anymore. So she was balling," said Him.

The woman didn't come back to work.

The man hasn't been seen since either. And detectives say they have no leads.

Because this is a residential area, police believe he likely lives in the area. They're also confident someone must have seen him since this happened around 5 on a Saturday....and are urging anyone who knows anything to come forward.