An officer-involved shooting took place early Wednesday morning just moments after an armed robber struck F Street Adult Video & Gifts at Florida Street and University Avenue in North Park.

According to officials, a man wearing a mask and armed with a gun entered the store at 2004 University Ave. shortly after midnight April 18. The suspect jumped the counter and robbed the business at gunpoint.

A police patrol car was driving by on University Avenue when officers spotted a suspicious-acting man running out of the shop and carrying a white bag.

The officers were unaware that a robbery had just taken place, but saw the man remove what appeared to be a stocking mask from his head as he ran down the street. They made a U-turn to speak to him, but lost sight of the man when he turned the corner.

After the patrol car turned north on Florida Street, the officers noticed a green Chevy Cavalier occupied by one person pulling away from the east curb of Florida Street. Thinking the man they were looking for might be in the car, they followed it to Lincoln Avenue until it stopped at a dead end.

Officials said when the officers got out and approached the vehicle on opposite sides to question the driver, one of the officers saw a handgun on the suspect’s lap and yelled for him to drop the weapon. The suspect allegedly defied the officer’s command and instead raised the weapon toward the driver’s window and fired several rounds at the officer.

Both officers responded, returning multiple rounds into the vehicle, fatally wounding the man.

Paramedics responded and pronounced the suspect dead at scene. The suspect has not been positively identified.

According to authorities, the preliminary investigation has revealed that the original robbery suspect fled the bookstore, ran north on Florida Street and yelled for the driver of the suspect vehicle to leave. The robber fled east on foot through an apartment complex, and shed clothing, gloves and his handgun along the way. Those items have been recovered.

The bandit who got away was described as a young black male, approximately 5 feet 8 inches tall and 130 pounds. He was wearing a beige shirt at the time of the robbery and is still at large.

If you have any information about this robbery, contact Lt. Kevin Rooney with the SDPD Homicide Unit at 619-531-2425.