Burleson, Texas

From the Fort Worth Star-Telegram of December 6, 2006

Store clerk shoots robbery suspect

An employee of Bennett’s Grocery Store shot and wounded a Cleburne man as he attempted a robbery Tuesday night, Burleson police said.

Travis Lee Baxter Jr. is being treated at John Peter Smith Hospital in Fort Worth, but his injuries are not believed to be life-threatening, said Capt. Cindy Aaron, a spokeswoman for the Burleson police department.

According to police reports, Baxter, who carried a large hunting knife, walked around the counter and demanded money from the clerk. The store owner yelled from the office, but Baxter refused to leave and was shot twice, police said.

The suspect fled in a Ford F-150 pickup along with another suspect, Justin Wade Germain, also of Cleburne. The two men then stopped at the Wal-Mart on S.W. Wilshire Blvd. to buy bandages, Aaron said. They made an illegal left turn, and were pulled over by state troopers until police arrived, Aaron said.

The robbery spree began earlier Tuesday night in Joshua, when Baxter, reportedly wearing a blue ski mask and carrying the hunting knife entered two convenience stores and demanded money and cigarettes from the clerks and money from a customer, police said.

All of the stolen property was recovered.

Baxter and Germain face aggravated robbery charges from Burleson and Joshua. Germain is in custody at Burleson’s holding facility.