Okay so I'm not much of a crimefighter...

Last week I was going to the ATM to get some cash for a haircut. I'm kind of rolling along the parking lot fumbling my card out of my wallet when I hear this guy yell stop!

I look up. Mere feet in front of me, standing just behind his armored car parked at the ATM, a guard has his .45 leveled at 2 masked gunmen who are scrambling around. One gets down behind their car, which is parked in the little alley between a dollar store and the ATM machine. The other goes around the corner of the dollar store, gun in hand.

Felt like I was watching a movie except it was real and I was right in the middle of it. My mind took several seconds to process the situation. Expecting to hear rounds start popping off, I jack it in rewind and back up out of the line of fire.

The one behind the car looks to be ready to quit, and he walks out and sorta sits down. Even pulls up his ski mask. Then he gets up and moves toward the driver's side of the car his gun hanging at his side. The guard, an older gray haired guy is in the classic shooter's stance, shouting at the top of his lungs for the guy to stop.

In the meantime masked gunman number 2 duck legs it off across the mall parking lot. (The ass of his jeans is hanging down between his knees, so he runs like he's in a sack race at a company picnic. Prolly still could've outrun me though.) Well, I'm reasonable sure nobody's going to shoot, so I punch 911 on the cell, slap it back in drive and head out across the parking lot toward him. At the end of Dillard's there's brick wall with some dumpsters behind it, and I see him pull off his mask and drop his gun on the other side of the wall.

He's a kid maybe 19 or 20 years old, tall, fit, hair in corn rows. From maybe 30 or 40 feet away I shout out my window "Stop right there bud! I got the cops on the phone!". I didn't really, 911 is just ringing away in my ear, apparently nobody's home. The kid ignores me (big surprise) and lopes around the corner of the wall just as the robbers' car shoots by and squeals around the corner. Apparently robber number one had gotten in and left in the car despite a loaded 45 aimed at center mass by the armored car guard. His compadre jumps in and they high tail it out of there.

No license plate on the car, just a plain gold colored sedan. Honda? Nissan? Ford? I could've followed them, but hey nothing like that ever happened to me before and I wasn't thinking straight. Well okay, I figured the driver still had his gun and getting shot at did cross my mind. This ain't the movies, in real life the good guys get shot too.

Anyway, I drive on around the corner, and there's several people standing around the area, apparently Dillards workers on some kind of break. I get out and tell them to stay away from the gun, just as the 911 operator finally answers. I semi coherently tell her where/who I am, and a minute later a Mall security dude ambles up. No big hurry he just saunters on up and asks for my name and address. I hang up with 911, and me and mall guy check out the gun. It's a freakin pellet pistol...but it looks for all world like a .45.

(I figger it went something like this. Would be robber number 1 to would be robber number 2: Hey Tyrone, let's go rob an armored car with our pellet guns! It'll be easy! Tyrone: You da man bra, less hit it!)

Bowling Green's finest makes the scene, and I'm interviewed about everything I saw. I felt a little guilty...almost said: Well I know I didn't follow the bad guys officers, but I did holler at one of them after he got rid of his gun. Real loud too.

Ya done good. No sense getting shot for money that isn't yours. I bet you'll tell that story for years to come at fishing camps and reunions.

Glad you're o.k.

Heck of a story Jim! That would be surreal for anyone. Sounds like you did as good as you could have done in that moment. Can you imagine if a shootout started? **** that could have taken that encounter to a bad place with terrible results.
No one ever said crooks are smart but a pellet gun??? That's a whole new level of stupid!!! Glad your ok brother:)

Wow, heck of a story too bad the guard didn't shoot and kill them both, then the story would have had a happy ending.

Thanks guys.

After I got back to work a BGPD detective came to interview me. A very excited receptionist called me and said "Jim, there's a detective out here, what do you want me to do?"

"It's okay m'aam I'll be out in a minute" I say, but the out-of-work comedian in me wanted to say "Keep him busy till I get out the back door!". Her eyes were big around as saucers when I got there, and I couldn't help but laugh.

Turns out the detective was a tall, attractive, 40ish lady with striking gray/blue eyes. Huge wedding/engagement rings, prominently displayed, most likely to discourage male advances. I related everything and answered her questions, but I was distracted by her and she knew it.

After she left the receptionist and I laughed about 'them were coming to get me'.

I love beautiful women.....:)

If they are beautiful it sure helps. lol

As I was reading your story I could have sworn the location of this wrong doing was gonna be Louisville. Bowling Green....my step-daughter had an experience of wrong doing in Bowling Green this week too. She's still fairly young and some what naive as to how low people can be, although I don't know why she's so naive considering how her brothers life has unfolded but that's an entirely different story.

Long story short for her episode this week was she saw a litter of puppies for sale in Bowling Green. The guy says the pups won't be ready until July 25th or so and he can't gaurantee there will be any puppies at that time, first come first served), the only way he can gaurantee it is if she gives him deposit money of $100.00, he didn't want a check, said he's been burned by checks in the past, says he wants it wired to him, so that's what my step-daughter did, wired him $100.00 dollars (step-daughter works for a very reputable credit union by the way). this was early this week, Tuesday or so.

Fast forward to Friday, the guy begins texting her, calling her, says he's had a death in the family and wants to know if she can wire him the rest of the money now. Like I said, my step-daughter is still young fella's, but this guy texting her, calling her, leaving voice messages, etc saying he would like to have full payment now, raised flags with her. At any rate, she finally wises up a little and does a little investigation and apparently come to find out this guy has a past of some sort.

A couple of weeks ago she was trying to purchase a puppy from a different source, this time out of Indiana, or so she thinks it was Indiana anyway. She called the number, the lady indicated a deposit was required, she also said she was in Georgia at the time but the once my step-daughter checked the number the area code was an Oklahoma number.

Times are bad out there boys and I don't intend to sound all doom and gloom but they sure don't seem to be getting much better. People intentionally committing crime just so they can get locked up to get healthcare, people going to great lengths to have sex with children, a teenager here in Louisville was recently charged with murder (beat his brother to death). The world is ugly, and for me sometimes it sure is hard to find the beauty, but it's out there I "think". The good thing I guess is my step-daughter gets to chock up another lesson learned. I just wish she would have consulted me or my wife about this sending of money before she did it.

[url]http://www.whas11.com/news/Police-Homeless-man-rapes-woman-in-front-of-son-124490569.html[/url]

Check out the link above....this is just an inkling of some of the ridiculous stuff that's going on these days...raping a woman repeatedly while forcing her 4 year old son to watch....Geeesh!! How sick can people get??? They say this character is facing 15 felony charges. In my opinion what he has done should entitle him to nothing less than the electric chair no later than within this next week or so. No sense in keeping scum alive any longer than necessary in my opinion. But this is the law according to how Chubminnow see's it. He might be facing 15 felonies today, but one day just like the rest of us, he's going to have to face God, assuming he makes it that far!

I know we have a couple of law enforcement guys who visit this website from time to time. My hat goes off to you guys. I do not see how you all keep yourselves from literally beating the day lights out of scum such as this once you all do get ahold of them. I guess that's part of your all's training, to control hatred and emotion???

Czech Republic and others have the answer. Only suggestion I would have is that they us a dull, rusty knife. :eek:

Tim,
I'm 100% in tune with what your saying. You have to be alert to the crooks out there. As my daughter gets older I get more concerned for her safety when she isn't with me. Jeez how am I going to handle it when she starts dating!?!?
I was helping do some renovation the other day at a friends new workout business and we were done just talking and I spot a guy walking back and forth around the door. I'm watching thinking he is up to something and sure enough he comes in and walks about two steps but never makes eye contact with me. So after about two seconds I speak up and ask him if I can help him(at this point I'm wishing I had my pistol on me). He looks at me and I see set of weird looking eyes. I'm talking high, drunk pill head type of look so I told him we are not open. He walks toward us and the woman in the group walks toward me and I step toward the guy and said "we not open what can I do for you" I'm not playing now and I think he knew it. He stopped and said man I'm from hazard and my papaw was just buried up here and my car broke down and I'm looking for some help. I laughed and said I bet you need $26 for a ticket huh? He tried to answer and I told him I have heard this junk before and we don't need to waste any more time. Just turn around and leave. He gets all teared up and said he just needs help not money. So I pointed him to where the salvation army is along with a few churches in the area. He said thanks and I said no problem sorry bout your luck brother.
This doofus turns around and says but if I had a dollar to spare he would be thankful to me. I said no money here and it's time for you to go. He left and about 15 minutes later we left and wouldn't you know it he isn't on the road to the salvation army but at the local fast food place talking to an older woman in the parking lot. He was still peddling his crap story that I have heard 4-5 times in the last few years. I'll help a fella if I can but if I think the guy or gal is lying I'll let them know and they can move on. World is full of these folks who live to bum off of folks working for a living.