Oakmont pizza shop owner shot 6 times during robbery feels ‘lucky to be alive’
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The owner of an Oakmont pizza shop shot six times during a robbery Sunday said he feels lucky to have survived and is overwhelmed by the outpouring of support he has received.
Greg Scampone said he was working the counter at the Fox’s Pizza Den he owns on Allegheny River Boulevard while a young female employee was handling kitchen duties when a man walked in shortly before 4 p.m., pulled out a pistol and demanded money. Several customers were in the restaurant at the time, he said.
“He started walking back toward the kitchen, and I said, ‘Hey, what are you doing?’ And then I noticed he had a gun,” Scampone said Tuesday morning from a hospital bed where he is recovering.
“I was worried about the girl working back there,” said Scampone, 34. “But she did the smartest thing by going into the walk-in cooler and locking it.”
Another employee who works as a driver was making deliveries when the robbery occurred, he said.
Scampone said he emptied the register and handed the cash to the man, “but he wanted more.”
“I told him, ‘We’re a pizza shop here. We don’t keep thousands of dollars on hand,’ ” Scampone said. “He kept saying, ‘There’s more money. I’m going to shoot if I don’t get any more money.’ But I told him, ‘This is it.’ ”
The robber, who has not been caught, was keeping his distance during the verbal exchange, Scampone said.
“But when he started moving closer to me, I felt that if I didn’t make a move, then I wasn’t going to have a chance to do anything,” he said.
Scampone — a former bodybuilder and winner of the 2017 National Physique Committee competition for the Pittsburgh-area chapter — said he was hoping the man would simply leave with the money he already stole.
“I wasn’t trying to prove something or be a hero,” Scampone said. “But he wasn’t going to leave without more money, and I was concerned about my employee and the customers.
“I went after him.”
The pair went down to the ground during the struggle, and the man began firing.
Bullets struck Scampone in both thighs, fracturing the femur bones and a knee. He also was shot in the abdomen and the chest.
Surgery was performed to repair damage to his liver and remove his spleen, he said, and surgeries will be needed to repair the damage to his legs.
“They haven’t told me how long recovery will take, but I feel it’s going to be awhile, ” Scampone said.
GoFundMe page set up
Friends set up a gofundme.com page to help cover Scampone’s medical expenses. Donors have nearly doubled the $30,000 goal for the fundraising campaign.
Scampone said his father owns the Fox’s Pizza Den in Harrison City. Family members are pitching in to help keep the Oakmont shop running while he recuperates, he said.
The shop is expected to reopen Wednesday, March 9.
“I really feel at a loss for words to describe how I feel about all the support I’ve been getting from people,” said Scampone, who lives in Oakmont and graduated from Riverview High School.
“The number of people who are helping is a bit overwhelming,” he said. “I want to get back to the restaurant as soon as I can.”
About the gunman
Allegheny County Police, who were asked to investigate the incident, said the gunman ran toward California Avenue after the robbery with an undisclosed amount of money.
He is described as a Black man about 5 foot, 4 inches to 5 foot, 6 inches tall with a slim build.
He was wearing black pants, a black ski mask and a red Robert Morris University hooded sweatshirt.
Anyone with information is asked to call county police at 833-255-8477.
Several local business owners told the Tribune-Review that Sunday’s robbery, which is a rare occurrence in the town of about 6,500 residents, has left them feeling rattled and vulnerable.
Oakmont Mayor Sophia Facaros said she and police Chief Michael Ford plan to meet with merchants to listen to their concerns.