Cops: Drug dealer shoots robber dead

A drug dealer with a permit to carry shot and killed a man who tried to rob him in Upper Darby last night, according to police.

The 24-year-old dealer was getting out of his car on Millbank Road near Midway Avenue around 11:30 p.m. when Devaughn Tucker-Knight, 21, allegedly came up behind him, pulled a gun and demanded everything the man had, said Upper Darby Police Superintendent Michael Chitwood.

Unfortunately for Tucker-Knight, the dealer had been reaching into his car to grab his handgun out when he approached him, Chitwood said. The two engaged in a gun battle and a total of nine shots were fired between them, police said.

Tucker-Knight, of Philadelphia, was hit twice in the chest and taken the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, where he was pronounced dead.

According to Chitwood, the dealer called police to the scene. The man has no record and initially stated he believed he was the target of a random robbery. However, upon further questioning, the man said he believed he was targeted, Chitwood said.

Prior to the incident, the dealer had allegedly been at his girlfriend's house when a strange woman came in and asked if he sold Percocets because she had friends that wanted to buy some, Chitwood said. The man then went to his house to get the pills, but was held up before he got to his door, according to police.

Chitwood said the dealer not only had a permit to carry a concealed weapon, but he also had an Act 235 permit, which is issued to security guards and people in other professions who carry guns as part of their jobs.

Both of the man's permits and his gun were confiscated by police, Chitwood said. He has not yet been charged with any crime and Chitwood said it would be up to the District Attorney's Office to determine if charges are warranted.