Des Moines bar owner shoots and kills robber: "Des Moines police say a would-be robber was shot to death by the owner of a tavern early this morning, and a second robber was seriously injured. Police Sergeant Vince Valdez says officers were called to El Zacatecas Club before three A.M. where a brawl was underway outside a video store next door. Valdez says the bar's owner, Martin Ramirez, was holding down the second man, claiming that man had tried to rob him along with another man who was still in the bar. Officers went inside and found a badly wounded man who had been shot. He was rushed to the hospital where he was pronounced dead. He's identified as 32-year-old Nicomedes Vazquez of Des Moines. The man with whom Ramirez was fighting in the parking lot is identified as 24-year-old Angel Nungaray of Indianola. He was listed in serious condition. It's unclear if Nungaray had also been shot. Ramirez was treated for his injuries and released. As yet, no charges have been filed."


Indiana: Security guard shoots man at convenience store: "Police are investigating an early morning shooting by a security guard at a South Bend convenience store. It happened just after 2:00 Thursday morning at V&K convenience on Lincolnway West just west of downtown. The security guard asked a man to leave and when he wouldn't-police say a fight broke out and the guard shot the man in the leg. The injured man was taken to the hospital. His injuries are not life threatening."


Illinois: Armed resident foils burglary: "Knox County Sheriff's Department deputies are investigating a residential burglary in which the homeowner apprehended a suspect after chasing him with a gun. Police were called to a burglary in progress at 7:43 p.m. Monday to 1350 Knox Road 600E. According to police, the resident was in his basement when he heard a knock at the door. When he got to the main floor, he saw two unidentified men on the rear deck. The resident returned to the basement and retrieved a handgun. The resident went upstairs and found the two men standing inside his home. The suspects fled and the resident followed, eventually firing a warning shot into the ground. One of the suspects stopped while the second suspect continued running. Tyrone L. Thompson, 20, Peoria, was detained by the homeowner until police arrived. Thompson was charged with residential burglary. The second suspect is described as a male with a small build and was last seen wearing a hooded sweatshirt. Police found a kitchen window screen had been cut, allowing entry into the residence"


Feds raid gun store tied to Mexican drug cartels: "Federal agents swooped down on a north Phoenix gun store Tuesday in the biggest weapons bust in years, highlighting Arizona's major role as an arms conduit to violent drug cartels in Mexico. Authorities said the store was a source for at least 650 high-powered weapons, including 250 AK-47 automatic weapons, smuggled to drug cartels for use in the escalating Mexican drug war. That war left 2,500 dead last year, and Arizona weapons were used to assassinate police and battle army squads near the border, authorities said. The raid on X-Caliber Guns on North Cave Creek Road capped an 11-month investigation by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Phoenix Police Department and the Arizona Attorney General's Office. Agents pored over evidence in the store, seized 1,300 weapons and closed down the business. Authorities arrested store owner George Iknadosian, 46, and two brothers, Hugo Miguel Gamez, 26, of Mesa, and Cesar Boroguez-Gamez, 28, of Phoenix, who are suspected of trafficking the weapons. All were booked into a Maricopa County jail."