One of three possibilities here:
1. The store owner is mistaken.
2. The store owner is lying.
3. The store owner is telling the truth. In that case, George Zimmerman is a complete and utter fool.
You missed one possibility.
4. The local media is trying to make a mountain out of a molehill to keep their jobs.
The word ‘patrolling’ is a misleading (intentionally).
From what I read, George admitted to a member of the Orlando media that he occasionally hangs out in front of the shop.
If a store offered me a free gun, I might hang out there once in a while too.
I don’t see where the store owner LIED. All he said (in response to being questioned by the media) was that he hadn’t HIRED George to do anything.
NOWHERE in the article does it say ANYONE ever SAW George ‘patrolling’ in front of the store.
I think you left out the fourth and most likely possibility; that the media is intentionally misreporting the facts in order to advance their anti-gun agenda.