That's a loaded question, Karousel, it requires a loaded answer:

Legally: NO, they are not responsible for his actions outside of his job description.

Morally: Perhaps, but precedent and liability often outweigh the benefits of the action in question.

Ethically: In a heartbeat, it's the note of class demonstrated by responsible corporations.

Generally: You can be certain that an entire bank of PR/Ad and legal experts pored over this dilemma at length and chose to protect the corporation.

Personally, I'm torn. The law enforcement agencies always warn against "heroic" actions for this very reason. However, until one is faced with the question of whether to intervene, his/her notions about such a decision are moot.

That said, having spent my career in the marketing mix, I recognize the bigger questions involved with such an action and a lot of it is NOT politically correct so I won't elucidate on it. Please let it suffice to say that such a payment would open many cans of worms for the company.

The solution, in my mind, would be for the actual store to hold locally funded events to generate the money in a "hometown hero" frame that does not involve the corporation.