A man who tried to rob a convenience store in the small town of Centerfield was shot and killed in a struggle over his gun with one of the female clerks.

Local resident Antonio Ramos, 42, approached a female clerk at Walkers convenience store when she walked outside to take out the trash about 12:20 a.m. Monday, said Sanpete County Sheriff's Sgt. Greg Peterson.

"While holding a gun, Ramos told the clerk, 'Let's go inside,' " Peterson said.

In the store, Ramos ordered one of the female clerks to tie up the other. The man gave her some "elastic, rubbery" cords, which he apparently didn't know didn't tie very well, Peterson said.

After Ramos thought the first woman was securely tied up, he put his gun down and began tying up the second woman, Peterson said.

The first clerk, who had worked her hands free, grabbed the gun. She was in the process of pointing it at the robber when he lunged at her to grab the weapon back, Peterson said. A short struggle ensued and the gun went off, killing Ramos.

"It all happened so quick," he said. "We're not sure if the guy actually pulled the gun, causing her finger to pull the trigger. We're not sure if she purposely fired."

The incident was caught on the store surveillance camera and was being reviewed Monday by investigators.

Identifying Ramos took police a few hours because he was not carrying any ID and police said they had not seen him before.

No vehicle was found in the area or evidence that anyone else was involved, according to police.

The two female clerks were "obviously shaken up," he said.

Armed robberies don't often occur in Centerfield, located in Sanpete County just outside of Gunnison, and fatal shootings are even more rare, the sergeant said. The officer who investigated the case had been with the Centerfield Police Department for 10 years and couldn't remember a case of a person being fatally shot by another party, Peterson said.

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