ST. LOUIS • A man shot a robber with the robber's own gun as they wrestled for control of the weapon during a holdup at a St. Louis motel Friday night.

A couple was staying at the Ebony Motel near the intersection of Page Boulevard and Grand Boulevard when two robbers barged in, St. Louis police Lt. James Joyner said. One of the men had a pistol and announced a robbery.

The girlfriend ducked behind a bed to hide as the boyfriend leaped at the man with the gun. He was wrestling both suspects when the gun went off once and struck one of the intruders in the lower back.

That man, who appeared to be in his late 30s, was taken to a hospital in serious but stable condition.

The boyfriend threw the gun on the roof after the tussle and called police. Police later recovered the weapon.

The other robber ran away.

Surveillance footage matched the boyfriend's description of events, Joyner said. He said police did not have further details on the suspect at large Friday night but could release surveillance photos of that suspect on Saturday.