LaGRANGE — The owner of Golden Liquors at 500 S. Greenwood St. fired a shot after a man allegedly left the store without paying for a bottle of brandy about 7:30 p.m. Monday, according to LaGrange police.

The owner told officers a customer entered the store and attempted to purchase a bottle of E&J brandy. When the man showed the owner his ID, it showed the customer was only 20 years old, the businessman stated.

The owner said he refused to sell the man the alcohol.

According to the owner, after a brief argument, the man took the bottle from the counter and walked out of the door of the business.

Police said the owner then grabbed his .32-caliber pistol and began to chase the alleged thief. The businessman fired one shot into the air as he ran after the customer on Ashton Street, Harwell Avenue and back toward the 400 block of South Greenwood Street.

According to police, the man ditched the bottle of alcohol on Ashton Street, where it was later retrieved and returned to the store owner.

Officers said they also recovered one shell casing in the parking lot of Golden Liquors where the owner shot his weapon.

The owner reportedly told police he was not aiming at the alleged thief.

Neither the customer or store owner were cited by officers, according to the police report