A man was yesterday shot in the back by an armed security guard after he was allegedly caught stealing slippers from the Discount Store Bond on High Street.

Gregory Mentore, 37, of no fixed place of abode is currently a patient of the Georgetown Hospital under police guard. His condition is listed as stable.

Police said in a press release yesterday that they are investigating the shooting incident which occurred around 4.30 am during which Mentore was shot and injured by a security guard.

Initial investigations have revealed that the armed security guard challenged Mentore who was on the premises and he was shot to his right upper back. A quantity of footwear was found in his possession and the bond was observed to have been broken into, the release said.

A senior police officer said that the guard who is attached to a city firm discharged two shots behind Mentore as he fled. One struck the man in his back.

The office said that the security guard is assisting the police with investigations.