A Home Depot employee in California was shot and killed outside his store while trying to stop an alleged thief and her boyfriend, who fled with a two-year-old child in their car.

Blake Mohs, 26, was fatally wounded during a struggle which took place after he spotted the pair trying to leave in Pleasanton, east of San Francisco, on Tuesday.

The district is a Democrat enclave, and Home Depot has long been targeted by thieves. In 2019, the retailer began paying police overtime in Oakland – at least $2.1 million by 2021 – to guard its store.

Benicia Knapps, 32, and David Guillory, 31, were later arrested on suspicion of murder, robbery, child endangerment and conspiracy, according to police.

Knapps, a licensed security guard with a criminal history, had attempted to steal a phone charger, according to witnesses.