Thieves tasted a lashing from a contractor’s weed eater as they drove off with several pieces of his equipment at a job site in Houston.
A lawncare worker trimming a client’s grass with his weed eater on March 30 saw two cars, a red Nissan and black Mercedes, pull up alongside his lawn equipment, parked several houses down on 8200 block of Renmark Lane.
An alleged robbery unfolded in broad daylight in the middle of the neighborhood.
The worker paused and watched them nab two backpack leaf blowers, worth several hundred dollars each, and toss them into the backseat of their car before beginning to drive off.
Mr. Alexander appears in footage taken from the scene, staggering to his feet while the car continues driving several yards before halting.
“Jerell, come on!” a suspect from the vehicle is heard shouting in the footage.
Retrieving his weed eater, the worker confronts the suspect, who is apparently dazed and trying to evade, and strikes him in the head just as a neighbor arrives at the scene.
“They’re stealing my equipment!” the worker tells the neighbor, who orders the fleeing suspect repeatedly, “Stay on the floor, stay on the floor!”
Mr. Alexander makes a break for it as the red Nissan returns to collect him before peeling off loudly. The constable alleges they flashed a firearm when the worker neared the car to intervene in their escape.
The suspect, who suffered minor injuries, was taken into custody after being brought to a local hospital by his accomplices, some of whom are still at large.
Five suspects, identified as black males, were captured in surveillance camera images.
The actions taken by the worker who tried to stop the bandits from escaping with his property were sanctioned by Constable Herman, who said he was “trying to protect his property and in the course of it did what his instincts told him to do,” the station reported.
A neighbor who heard the commotion concurs that those actions were justified.
On April 5, deputies executed a felony warrant and arrested suspect Johnathan Dixon in connection with the lawncare heist, along with his girlfriend, Jada Edwards, who was charged with harboring a fugitive.
Several of the suspects are still on the loose.
“The investigation continues to identify the additional suspects who fled the scene,” Constable Herman posted on Facebook. “If you have any information regarding this case or the identity of these suspects, you are urged to contact our dispatch at 281-376-3472.”
