WGNO

Texas store employee ran over shoplifting suspect with Jeep, police say

LUBBOCK, Texas (KLBK) — An employee of a Lubbock, Texas home improvement store jumped in a Jeep to pursue a shoplifting suspect Wednesday and ran the man over, according to a police report.

At 11:44 a.m., Lubbock police responded to Sutherlands after getting reports of a theft.

When officers arrived, they found the suspect injured and lying on the ground.

The police report said the employee was working inside Sutherlands when he saw the suspect run out of the business with stolen items.

The man got inside of his Jeep and pursued the suspect who was running away, according to police.

The suspect then got on a bike he had staged by the dumpster and rode away, but couldn’t keep his balance and fell off the bike, the report states. The store employee wasn’t able to stop the Jeep fast enough and ran over the man.

The driver of the Jeep stayed at the scene and the suspect was taken to University Medical Center by EMS for his injures. A family member of the shoplifting suspect told sister station KLBK that the injuries were very serious.

The police report said the stolen property was recovered. Sutherlands did not immediately reply to a request for comment.

(James Clark contributed to this report.)