A clerk at a Volusia County convenience store was arrested Thursday after he shot another man in the shoulder while the two were "joking around" inside the store earlier in the day, deputies said.
Deputies were dispatched to Joy Grocery Store on North U.S. Highway 17 after the Sheriff's Office received a call about the shooting at 10:14 a.m., said Gary Davidson, a spokesman for the Volusia County Sheriff's Office.
Eduar Martinez, 20, of DeLeon Springs, has been charged with aggravated assault with a firearm and attempted manslaughter for shooting 23-year-old Nicholas Alligood.
When deputies arrived to the scene, they found Alligood on the floor, bleeding from a gunshot wound to the right shoulder.
Alligood was conscious, alert and was responding to questions from paramedics who were treating him at the scene. However, the man's condition quickly worsened, and Alligood remains in critical condition at Halifax Health Medical Center, in Daytona Beach.
Martinez told investigators that he has known Alligood for about nine months.
The two were hanging out and joking around inside the store Thursday morning when Martinez told investigators he took out his boss' .380-caliber semi-automatic handgun out from under the counter.
Despite previously being warned by the store owner not to play with the gun, Martinez told investigators he had even previously pointed the firearm at someone else.
Martinez said he pointed the gun at Alligood just to see his reaction and didn't realize it was loaded, Davidson said.
The gun discharged, striking Alligood at close range.
Deputies said they reviewed surveillance footage to confirm the shooting wasn't sparked by a confrontation between the two men. Both men are from DeLeon Springs, deputies said.
Martinez was taken to the Volusia County Branch Jail, where he was booked on $50,000 bond.