Convenience Store Owner Pulls All-Nighter To Protect Property
Follow CBSDFW.COM: Facebook | Twitter
DALLAS (CBSDFW.COM) – Wolf Mart store owner Samir Patel is pulling an all-nighter inside his store in hopes of preventing another burglary there.
Patel said he's frustrated but determined.
"It is my property, I have to protect my business and protect the property," he said.
Burglars busted their SUV through the wall of Patel's store; stealing the ATM causing thousands of dollars in damage. Patel estimated they created at least $15,000 in damage to his wall, floor and coolers.
With the thieves on the run and his store in shambles, Patel insisted he won't back down.
"If you did the wrong thing, you need to be scared. I never scared. They can come with their gun, I never scared. No way," he said.
The wall isn't fixed yet, so Patel is guarding his property personally and with the help of undercover, armed guards outside.
"No, no, no. I'm not moving anywhere. Why should I have to move? They need to move. Did I do the wrong thing? They did the wrong thing," said Patel.
Dairy Queen manager Briana Rodriguez, who works only a few stores down from Patel's store, agreed with his defiant attitude toward the criminals.
A few stores down from Patel's store,
"I'd be the same way. Just because they break in, eventually it could happen to anybody. It doesn't mean you should have to get your stuff and just go," said Rodriguez. "It's crazy. It's getting really dangerous around here."
Patel told CBS 11 News it may take a few days before the wall is secured. But until that happens, his convenience store is his second home.
Police have recovered the SUV used in the crime but have yet to name any suspects.
(©2015 CBS Local Media, a division of CBS Radio Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
