Police: 2 brothers arrested for White Settlement shooting, robbery
WHITE SETTLEMENT, Texas (CBSDFW.COM) — Two brothers were arrested after shooting up and robbing a man's hotel room in White Settlement Friday, police said.
On April 15, police responded to a report of a shooting at the Days Inn on the 8500 block of West Freeway. The victim reported that he let two men — whom he had met the previous day — enter his hotel room, assuming they were there to assist him in unloading a moving truck.
The victim said the duo — later identified as brothers Tyler Soelz, 20, and Garrett Soelz, 18 — displayed and shot a handgun inside the room, then proceeded to steal a backpack and a mobile telephone, police said. The victim told police that they also demanded cash from him before fleeing the scene.
The victim was not injured during the shooting.
Responding officers were able to obtain a partial license plate from surveillance footage; However, another officer was able to find an exact license plate match by searching a security camera that was close to the intersection of S. Las Vegas Trail and West Freeway Service Road.
Officials said the footage "clearly showed" the make and model of the car, a tan 2011 Ford Crown Victoria.
Based on the evidence at the scene, statements from the victim, and the surveillance footage — police were able to obtain two felony warrants for the brothers.
On Wednesday, April 20, White Settlement police contacted the Fort Worth Police Department to inform them of the last known vehicle location. Fort Worth police were then able to locate the brothers near Oakmont Boulevard and S. Hulen Street.
Both were booked into the White Settlement Police Department Jail and charged with aggravated robbery with a deadly weapon.
"This was outstanding work and collaboration with the Fort Worth Police Department while using video technology to obtain exact vehicle information to locate two violent fugitives," White Settlement Police Chief Christopher Cook said in a statement. "Gun violence will not be tolerated in our community and our detectives will find anyone using firearms in the furtherance of criminal activity."