Armed robbers flee after clerk opens fire

12:17 PM CDT on Friday, March 20, 2009
WFAA-TV Staff

FORT WORTH — Police say two men wearing hooded sweatshirts shot out the glass door at the CC 99 Cent Plus store in the 5700 block of Lovell Avenue Thursday night. The men then demanded money from the store clerk. But the clerk grabbed his own gun and fired several shots at the suspects. The would-be robbers fled. It was not clear if they were hurt in the exchange of gunfire. The clerk was not injured.

Weatherford man shoots intruder attacking his son

12:10 PM CST on Wednesday, March 4, 2009

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By LIZ FORD / The Dallas Morning News

A man shot and killed an intruder who was assaulting his 34-year-old son, Weatherford police said today.

Robert E. Bardwell, 57, entered the home in the 500 block of South Rusk Street and began attacking the son, police said. The dad fired a warning shot into the ceiling, but the attack continued. The dad then fired at Bardwell.

Police arrived at the home shortly after 1 a.m. today. Bardwell, who appeared to have multiple gunshot wounds, was pronounced dead at the scene.

Bardwell appears to have been known to the 66-year-old man and his son, authorities said. Police did not provide further details on Bardwell's relationship with the family.

When completed, the investigation will be forwarded to the district attorney's office for review, police said.

Authorities did not release the names of the father and son.

Tough-talking Arlington woman, 65, chases down thief

01:45 PM CST on Wednesday, March 4, 2009

Associated Press

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FORT WORTH, Texas -- Unholstering her cell phone from her bra, a tough-talking Texas woman chased down a purse snatcher in her car while calling 911.

"Put it on the hood, now!" Val Renfro is heard yelling on the 911 recording after she got her man. "You give me my purse, right now."

Renfro, 65, from Arlington, had finished shopping Sunday at a Fort Worth office supply store and was getting into her car when a man shoved her twice, grabbed her purse and ran, according to a police report.

That's when she reached for her phone, which she always keeps tucked into her bra, and called 911.

While talking to the operator, Renfro drove after the fleeing man.

At one point, she apparently nudges the man with her car. The man tells her if she rolls down her window, he'll return the purse. "Like hell I will," she yells.

Onlookers eventually cornered the man near a movie theater.

Renfro said she later ran into the suspect at the police station, where he apologized to her. She said she accepted his apology.

"I don't have any animosity toward him," Renfro said. "Who am I to be the judge of him?"

Police identified the suspect as Ricky Lee Sample, 47. He remained in the Tarrant County Jail on Wednesday on a charge of aggravated robbery as well as a parole violation. His bail was set at $20,000.

05:15 AM CST on Monday, February 11, 2008
From Staff Reports

The owner of a clothing store opened fire Sunday night on three robbers, Dallas police said.

One of them, who was not identified, was taken to a local hospital and was in critical condition, police said.

Police did not release the name of the owner.

The incident began about 6:40 p.m. Sunday when three men, two of whom had guns, came into Stay Fly Urban Wear in the 7800 block of South Loop 12, police said. The owner then opened fire, hitting one of the men. His two accomplices fled in a vehicle that police found abandoned in the 200 block of South Jim Miller Road.

Police said they believed that a second man may have been wounded.

By MELISSA VARGAS
mvargas@star-telegram.com

FLOWER MOUND -- Two Good Samaritans foiled a bank robbery Saturday morning by chasing down and detaining two brothers who are now in jail, police said.

At about 10:15 a.m., a man entered the Bank of America inside the Albertsons in the 2800 block of Flower Mound Road and handed a teller a note demanding money. The teller complied, and the man left with an undisclosed amount of money, police said.

A bank customer followed the man into the parking lot, where a scuffle ensued. The suspect, later identified as 22-year-old Trevor Burns, shook a 9 mm handgun aggressively at the customer, police said.

The customer successfully detained the suspect.

A suspected accomplice to the robbery, 17-year-old James Burns, fled the scene in a white Volkswagen Jetta as his brother was being arrested, police said. Another Good Samaritan followed him until James Burns crashed in the 2500 block of Magnolia Leaf Lane. The pursuer detained him until police arrived, police said.

Police say they found a 9 mm handgun in the Jetta.

The brothers were arrested and are in the Flower Mound Jail, police said.

Police advise residents not to try and stop a crime in progress.

"It could have very easily gone bad," officer Joe Adcock said. "If you can get the suspect information or vehicle information, that would be great. Don't compromise your safety."

No one was injured in the incident.

If you have information about the robbery or the suspects, police ask that you call 972-874-3307.

Dallas: Police say man was shot, beaten with baseball bat
10:04 PM CST on Friday, February 8, 2008 By TANYA EISERER / The Dallas Morning News
teiserer@dallasnews.com

A mob turned the tables on a man accused of raping a mother at knifepoint in her Red Bird-area apartment with her children present, authorities said.

The 26-year-old man, who had not been identified, was undergoing surgery Friday afternoon after being beaten with a baseball bat and shot at least twice, apparently once in the head.

"I would have to say this is unusual," Lt. Sally Lannom, commander of the assaults unit for the Dallas police, said of the melee. "It is outside the norm."

The mother, who didn't know her attacker, was taken to Parkland Memorial Hospital. Her condition was unknown.

At the apartment complex, only one woman was willing to talk about what happened.

"He got what he deserved," Sharon Ivy said. "You don't go into [a] house ... do things to [a] momma and think it's all right. That was just a community watch."

According to police, the man forced his way into the 22-year-old woman's unlocked apartment in the 1400 block of West Wheatland Road around noon. Five children, some of whom belonged to the woman, were in the apartment at the time, police said.

"The suspect forced her into the bedroom and started tearing her clothes off," Lt. Lannom said. He then sexually assaulted her, police said.

Some of the children fled the apartment as the assault was going on, police said. When the man laid down the knife and began getting dressed, the woman ran out of her apartment to tell her boyfriend, who was in the parking lot with several friends, police said.

"She told him what was going on," Lt. Lannom said. He and his friends confronted the suspect in the apartment and a fight ensued, she said.

Police said the fight spilled out into the parking lot, with an unknown number of people taking part in the melee.

The suspect eventually broke free and ran into another apartment, where he was shot. He did not live in that apartment, but it may belong to a relative, police said.

The melee that followed the assault was under investigation, and it was unclear Friday whether charges would be filed.

Rebecca Lopez of WFAA-TV (Channel 8) contributed to this report.