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Barber-shop owner who killed armed robber feared for son's safety

The gun-toting robber wasn't satisfied Thursday night when the West Oak Lane barber handed over all the money in the shop, so he made the fatal mistake of threatening to hurt the barber's young son.

The gun-toting robber wasn't satisfied Thursday night when the West Oak Lane barber handed over all the money in the shop, so he made the fatal mistake of threatening to hurt the barber's young son.

Convinced that he and his son were about to die, the barber pulled his licensed handgun and fatally shot the robber in the head.

Yesterday, police identified the dead man as Hakeem Birch, 19, of Wister Street near Godfrey Avenue in East Germantown.

All day long, neighbors and customers stopped by the Cross Cutz barber shop on Briar Road near 74th Avenue to offer support to owner Llord Baron Cross, 33.

"I'm a Christian man so I feel sorry that a life has been lost," Cross said. "I feel the love from my community and that has gotten me through such a sad day."

Cross, who was questioned and then released by police yesterday, will not be charged.

The Mount Airy native, who has been a licensed barber since 1994, fulfilled a lifelong dream when he opened his own shop four years ago "in a nice, quiet community with very friendly neighbors."

That dream became a nightmare at 6:07 p.m. Thursday when a man knocked on the door and asked if the shop was still open.

"I had never seen him before so I thought he was a new customer," Cross said. "I got ready to cut his hair while he was fumbling around in his pocket.

"I thought he was going for his cell phone. I was very naive about the situation. I was clueless."

Cross said the man "drew his gun on me and asked me for my money. I put my hands up and said, 'I don't want any trouble.' "

The robber removed money from Cross' pockets and from the cash register, then told him that it wasn't enough.

Cross remembers repeating, "It's all I have. Please don't hurt me. I'm a family man."

Cross thinks that the robber heard the TV in the back room and realized someone else was in the shop. Cross' 9-year-old son was back there, playing video games and waiting for his father to finish up.

"I like to keep my five boys close with me so they're safe and so they learn entrepreneurship," Cross said. "They help me sweep up and do things in the shop."

Cross said he told the robber, "My son is here. You can have anything you want. Just please don't hurt us."

The robber said he needed more money, adding, "I'll hurt your son, too."

Suddenly, he walked out the door, but quickly returned while Cross was trying to lock up.

"I'm thinking, 'I'm dead. He's going to kill me and kill my son, too,' " Cross said. So he grabbed the robber by the shoulders, spun him around, pinned him against the wall and said, "Do not move."

The robber twisted around and pointed his gun at Cross' abdomen. Cross pulled his licensed handgun and shot the robber in the head. He then called 9-1-1.

"Once his gun was in my stomach, I had no choice," Cross said. "I still don't know why I'm not dead." *

Staff writers Dana DiFilippo and Dave Gambacorta contributed to this report.