Monday, April 02, 2007



OH: Off-duty patrolman, two others foil robber: "An off-duty patrolman and a man not in the mood to be robbed turned the tables on a would-be robber Friday evening at the Famicos University Towers apartment building. The two had an assist from a tenant who happened to be driving by and gave the cop a ride to catch the fleeing, bleeding suspect. Robert Porter, 20, is recovering from a gunshot wound that shattered a bone in his left forearm. Patrolman Felton Mathis tells it this way: He was working security at the building at 1575 East Blvd. At 6:40 p.m., he saw two men fighting in the rear vestibule off the lobby. A shot rang out. Mathis took cover and saw them struggling over a .357 Magnum. The gun fired again as the victim, a tall, muscular man, took control of it. Porter, with his forearm dangling, took off running. Mathis disarmed the victim then ran after Porter, who had a head start." Mathis didn't have a police car, but he noticed a tenant driving toward him. "I asked him if he'd drive me in the direction of the suspect and he said sure," Mathis said. Off the crime-fighting duo went. Mathis jumped out of the car at 1465 East Boulevard and found Porter in a rear parking lot. "He was wounded pretty bad so he stopped running," Mathis said. Huron Hospital staff would not say what condition Porter was in Saturday. He'll be charged with attempted aggravated robbery. The victim later told Mathis, "I thought I was gonna die"


Utah 14-year-old attempts to rob bar: "A 14-year-old boy carrying a revolver tried to rob a bar in East Millcreek on Saturday night but instead took a beating. The boy entered the back door of the Catfish Cabana Club, at 3820 S. Highland Drive, held out a revolver and yelled, ''This is a robbery,'' according to sheriff's deputies. That's when the bar owner grabbed the gun and wrestled the boy. The struggle spilled into a back parking lot and ended with customers and the bar owner pinning the boy to the ground until deputies could arrive, Salt Lake County sheriff's Lt. Rob Norton said. Another teen with the would-be robber ran as soon as the robbery went awry, Norton said. Deputies used dogs to search for the teen, who did not appear to have a gun, Norton said. The captured boy was booked for aggravated robbery and held in juvenile jail. ''We've seen a lot of kids with guns in recent years,'' Norton said. ''But the fact that such a young boy attempted a strong-arm robbery is particularly alarming.'' Nobody was hurt in the robbery, except the boy, Norton said. He was bleeding from his head after the struggle."

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