GC-157 The Weapon Snatcher | A Study in Mission

Shooter Rughi

The “Weapon Snatcher”

Pretty much everyone has seen the viral footage of a man snatching a stolen AR-15 rifle from a protester during the recent Seattle riots. However, not everyone knows this was not the first, but the second rifle the “Weapon Snatcher” took away from a rioter that day.

“Shooter Rughi” shares with us the importance of mindset, training, and core values. These are what led him to take successful action in a situation that could have gone horribly wrong.    

After blending into the crowd, chanting their slogans, and being “the grey man”, this experienced protection specialist (think executive protection) launched into action quickly and decisively to resolve what might well have been an extremely bad development.

Listen to the podcast. There’s a ton of good information in it. Below you’ll find a few excerpts. Some (by no means all) of the topics you’ll hear include:

•25:00 What he carried and why. Medical kit and skill obligations.

•26:57 Rughi’s background and experience.

•23:30 The advantage of true concealment and being the Gray Man.

•40:21 Breaking cover and the draw.

•45:30 What could have gone better?

•47:20 Looking like a good guy: how do you avoid getting shot by another good guy?

•54:30 What would you do differently?

⚠️ Warning: Explicit language…F bombs ahead.

Mindset and Mission Clarity

“I was able to make that decision so rapidly because I had framed my mindset into what I was gonna go into that day.” (09:07)

Being Decisive: the Element Of Surprise

“They produced another rifle bag out of the back of the second vehicle, which they pulled the rifle from…I drew my pistol from my pocket and I came up on him pretty much the same way as the other. the only difference was I had further distance to cover.”

“Most of everyone there didn’t know what happened with the first shooter and me taking his rifle…violence and surprise. [With] the guy acting like a sheep the second he saw me, I was able to snatch that weapon – he didn’t want any of it. He immediately took his hand off the fire control.”

The Fundamental Difference Between A Job vs A Duty

07:10 Asked, what was the thought process for you to leave your principles (his protectees) and deal with the stolen police rifle, SR responds,

“From the moment I saw the firearm, I knew it was in the hands of someone that was illegally obtaining it…they were escalating everything they had done from that day..to the moment I decided I needed to get my hands on that weapon and get it away from them…I headed a job to do.