When a teenager ran up to a wheelchair-bound veteran and attempted to steal his bag, he likely assumed he had found an easy target to try to rob. However, the suspect quickly learned a tough lesson that he likely never saw coming. You don’t mess with a veteran, especially one in a wheelchair in Texas.
A 64-year-old wheelchair-bound military veteran was waiting to catch a ride home in downtown Houston, Texas when an alleged would-be robber ran up to his wheelchair and tried to steal his backpack while he waited for the city’s public transit. However, rather than making off with the wheelchair-bound veteran’s bag, the teen suspect got more than he bargained for when the vet put up a fight.
According to reports, the incident unfolded around 9 p.m. on a Monday night near the intersection of Main Street and Pierce Street by the Downtown Transit Center METRO station. When the teenager tried to rob the wheelchair-bound veteran, he likely didn’t anticipate that his victim could be armed, but he was. So, instead of making off with the vet’s backpack, the suspect got multiple gunshot wounds instead.
Officers with the METRO Police Department were flagged down and located the source of the gunfire before turning the scene over to Houston Police Department. The veteran admitted to shooting the teenager, who he claimed was trying to rob him. HPD confirmed that the 18-year-old suspect ran up to the veteran and tried to steal his bag as the vet was waiting on public transportation near the METRO station.
After the teen grabbed his bag, a struggle ensued before the veteran pulled out a firearm and shot the attempted robber multiple times, police said. When first responders arrived at the scene, they found the suspect already on the ground with multiple gunshot wounds. He was transported to a local hospital in critical condition, where he was treated and later upgraded to stable condition and expected to recover, according to KAKE News.
“He is a veteran and he was in the area to catch a metro back to his residence,” Lt. J.P Horelica explained. “The victim in the wheelchair was able to produce a firearm to defend himself and fired multiple shots, striking the suspect,” Horelica continued. “The suspect ran several hundred yards, where he collapsed and was picked up by the Houston Fire Department and treated,” Horelica added.
The wheelchair-bound veteran was unharmed and remained at the scene, where he cooperated with investigators, police said. Immediately after the incident, reports stated that it was unclear whether anyone would face any charges over the altercation, but officials said that once the suspect was well enough to speak with them, they would file charges.
Sadly, crimes of theft have become increasingly common in the city. In fact, Houston business owners said a “relentless wave” of robberies has forced many of them to sleep in their businesses while armed in hopes of deterring crime, according to a report from The Blaze. More than one business owner expressed fear that the string of robberies might put them out of business.
“That is the biggest problem right now, me and plenty of other bar owners are sleeping in our bars armed,” Sean Fitzmaurice, the owner of Reserve 101, explained. Marin Slanina, the owner of Star Sailer, echoed similar sentiments, saying, “We are all getting broken into and things in bars are getting stolen.”
In addition to telling the City Council that the influx of robberies was going to force them to close down, Houston bar and other business owners also complained that the police response is far too slow to make a dent in the robberies with one owner alleging that “response times to the alarms are anywhere from an hour to four hours.” With robbers “in and out in 15 minutes,” police officers are at a disadvantage.
As the old saying goes, when seconds count, the police are only minutes away — and it’s no fault of their own. Law enforcement simply can’t be everywhere at once, but thanks to the Second Amendment, business owners and innocent citizens don’t have to be sitting ducks, at the mercy of criminals. Instead, a wheelchair-bound veteran can level the field when attacked by a teen and defend himself and his property.
