A battle between two Detroit gas station owners escalated this week when one of the men was fatally shot during a fiery argument, police said.

Police said after Jawad Bazzi and a group of his employees confronted his unidentified rival recently, shots were fired and the 45-year-old gas station owner was shot in the head, The Detroit Free Press reported Saturday.

The conflict between Bazzi and his 51-year-old rival began when the men began dropping their gasoline prices in an attempt to improve business.

But Friday, the tension turned physical when Bazzi's group allegedly entered the other man's establishment to actively confront his business rival.

Police allege a fight soon erupted between the two sides and after one of Bazzi's workers began using a baseball bat, his rival fired three or four shots from a handgun.

One of those bullets struck and killed Bazzi, leading to the unidentified owner's arrest.

"It's crazy," Bazzi's nephew, Hafed, told the newspaper. "There had been conflicts before but never like this."  // Copyright 2007 by United Press International



Publication date: 18 November 2007   

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