Akron barber chases armed gunman from next door beauty shop

AKRON, Ohio - An Akron barber was a hero Wednesday when he prevented an armed gunman from robbing the beauty shop next door to his barbershop.

Terrance Duncan, 43, said he was talking on the phone with his grandmother around 2:30 p.m. Wednesday when he spotted a man glaring at the beauty shop on 920 E. Wilbeth Road.        

Duncan grabbed his gun to see what was going on and told NewsChannel5, “sure enough he was robbing” Park Hill Hair Fashions next door.

**WEB EXTRA | Watch the raw interview with Duncan above**

Duncan said the man had a bandana pulled up to his eyes and was wearing teen or young adult clothing. The suspect then showed his gun to Lee Cullison, 70, who's worked at Park Hill Fashions for three months. 

Cullison said she first thought it was a joke, until the intruder showed her a big gun.

“He showed me the gun and I thought, 'Oh, he means business.' And by that time, I guess, I saw Terrance and yelled at Terrance, 'He’s trying to rob me and he’s got a gun,' and Terrance was on him," Cullison said.

Duncan said he pointed his gun at the suspect’s gun, and the two had an argument. Somehow, Duncan managed to talk him out of the shop.

"I kept my gun on him and we walked out. I said politely, 'OK, you might want to take off now,' and he did," Duncan said.

The suspect then jumped over a fence and ran off.

While Duncan said this was not a "hero-type deal" because he was just protecting a friend, Cullison strongly disagrees.

"He’s a hero. He’s a hero. He was looking after us. He has kind of kept his eye on me since the first day I started," Cullison said.

As for Duncan, he hopes the young robber reflects on his actions and mends his ways. 

Duncan is also a boxing coach at Blue Steel Boxing Academy on Balch Road in Akron.

"Hopefully, we can get some of these young kids to get out and box instead of picking up a pistol."