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Police: Gunman shoots one man, robs another within minutes

RIVERDALE — A man who was robbed at gunpoint said he told the gunman he has two kids in an effort to stay alive.

Channel 2's Tom Jones learned police believe the same gunman shot another man minutes before.

The victim said he was painting a deck on South Hills when he said a gunman showed up out of nowhere and demanded money. The man struggled with the gunman and tried to get away. As he was running away, the gunman shot the man in the leg.

Minutes before, less than two miles away, another man had an encounter with the gunman.

"I turned around -- he had a gun to my face," said Justin Garland.

Garland said he was working on a foreclosed home when the gunman came in and robbed him of everything he had, including the shirt on his back.

"He took my pants, took my shoes, took my shirt and took my van, stole my van, and he left," Garland said.

Fulton County police believe the gunman who robbed Garland also shot the other man because the descriptions they gave are so similar.

When Garland heard about the shooting, he realized he could have been shot, too.

"I told him in here, I said, 'Dude. I got two kids.' I said, 'I got two kids' and he said, 'I respect that.' He said, 'I do too,'" Garland said.

The suspect still took off with his van.

The injured man is recovering.

"I'm just glad he's fine and nothing. It could have been a lot worse. But it wasn't," said the man's fiancée.

Garland said he didn't get a good look at the gunman. Both victims said he had on blue jeans and a flannel shirt. Police are searching for the gunman.