HOUSTON — Robbery suspects in northwest Harris County messed with the wrong guy who used his weed trimmer to fight back.
Video shows the victim trimming a lawn Saturday afternoon on Renmark Lane near Cypresswood Drive.
According to Precinct 4, he spotted some men stealing equipment from his truck parked a few houses down.
As the suspects drove past him, they tried to hit the victim with their car, Precinct 4 said. That's when he threw his lawn tool at their windshield.
The victim then chased after the car but stopped when the driver pointed a gun at him.
One passenger fell out of the car as it drove off and landed in the street. He tried to stand up but kept falling back down as the victim threatened him with the weed trimmer.
"He was trying to protect his property and in the course of it did what his instincts told him to do," Precinct 4 Constable Mark Herman said.
The injured guy finally ran off and got back into the red, four-door Nissan Ultima.
"Come on, Jerell!" someone in the vehicle yelled.
"The suspect, Jerell Alexander, received minor injuries from being struck and was later located at a local hospital," Herman said.
Alexander, 24, was arrested and charged with aggravated robbery with a deadly weapon. It's not his first run-in with the law. Court records show he was convicted of robbery with bodily injury in 2019.
A neighbor heard the commotion and called 911.
"Help! Help!" he yelled. "Stay on the floor, stay on the floor!"
Neighbor Edita Minaya told us the victim also does her lawn.
"He's trying to defend his property, which is OK because that's what he makes his money out of," Minaya told us.
She hopes the other suspects are caught soon.
"I mean, you can't go around robbing people's stuff," Minaya said.
Herman's office released surveillance photos of the other accused robbers.
They said a second dark-colored vehicle may also have been involved.
If you recognize them or have any other information about this crime, call Precinct 4 at 281-376-3472.
