Residents protest Detroit gas station after clerk shoots man during argument

Video shows man shot while exiting station

DETROIT – A Shell gas station on Warren Avenue was home to a protest Thursday.

ORIGINAL STORY: Over bag of chips? Detroit gas station shooting under investigation

The shooting occurred at the gas station Tuesday night. Surveillance video showed a man stealing chips


  • Surveillance video from Sunday night appears to show the men arguing with clerk and stealing from the gas station.
  • Surveillance video from Tuesday night appears to show those same men arguing with the clerk and trying to steal items before the shooting occurred.
  • The victim was released from the hospital Thursday.

"Is a bag of chips worth somebody's life?" asked Dhoruba Diallo.

Tevarlis Durham and his brother Jamel Mobley were inside the gas station when an argument started between the brothers and a clerk. Mobley then took bags of chips and the clerk started shooting, hitting Durham in the chest.

"You can't just shoot somebody because they're walking out the store with a bag of chips," said Ricardo Williams.

Williams is the brother of Durham and Mobley. He said Durham is now hospitalized after the shooting. 

"Why did you shoot?" Williams asked. "That's the only thing I want to know. This gas station should not be here!" 

Nikkolas Salemassi, a family member of the owner, came to the protest to tell their side, though he does believe the clerk was wrong for shooting at the brothers.

"That was the stupidest thing and he's being punished for it right now," Salemassi said. "He's in jail. So, what more do the people who came down here want from the gas station?" 

The protesters are calling for a complete shutdown and said they plan to go to the gas station every day until it happens.

The owner of the gas station released the following statement:

I am thankful, first that the young man is improving, and that the shooter -- who was in possession of a weapon against company policy and who was immediately fired -- is in jail. 

We have been in this same location in the community for more than 30 years without incident and remain commited to Detroit and its residents. 

We are ready to work together to restore peace.