ST. LOUIS (AP) — A former gas station clerk in St. Louis has been sentenced to more than nine years in prison for shooting a customer he wrongly suspected of stealing candy.

Taleb Jawher was sentenced Wednesday in U.S. District Court, where he pleaded guilty in May to being an illegal alien in possession of a firearm. He is awaiting trial in state court on a first-degree murder charge.

Jawher was working at a Phillips 66 store on Sept. 26, 2017, when he accused 34-year-old Christopher Simmons, of trying to steal a $1.10 bag of candy.

Court documents say Jawher followed Simmons outside and was beating him on the head when his handgun discharged.

Immigration officials say Jawher, who is originally from Jordan, came to the U.S. legally but overstayed his visa.