SAN DIEGO ---- An alleged shoplifter stabbed a security guard at a Clairemont Mesa grocery store, police said Saturday.

The security guard at the Vons at 5555 Balboa Ave. had handcuffed the shoplifter, but removed the handcuffs after about an hour. The man then stabbed him in the arm and ran away, said San Diego police Officer David Stafford.

The guard was taken to Sharp Grossmont Hospital.

The suspect was described as a 22-year-old Asian man, about 6-feet tall with a muscular build.