Disable Navy veteran Allan Huddleston fought back against a man who stole his truck last week–the whole thing caught on camera–and says he’d do it again if given half the chance.
On January 15, Huddleston stopped at a convenience store in the Fort Worth, Texas suburb of Richland Hills to pick up a copy of the morning paper.
As he exited his vehicle, a man approached the 69-year-old Vietnam veteran, and asked him for some money. But it quickly became obvious to Huddleston that what the wandering man really wanted was his truck.
Surveillance footage from outside the convenience store shows Huddleston exiting his truck as the other man accosts him. The thief grabs Huddleston’s wallet, shoves him and then attempts to quickly drive away. That attempt, however, is quickly thwarted by Huddleston’s pugilistic reaction.
Instead of a quick-and-clean getaway, the car-jacker had to fend off the truck’s owner before making his getaway. At one point, Huddleston headlocks the thief and drags him out of the truck’s cab before the younger man eventually overpowers him. Huddleston described the fight:
He got in the truck immediately and tried to drive off. When he tried to drive off, I’ve got the keys. I reach into my truck and I put him in a headlock and I drag him out of my truck. I thought I could get a hold of this rascal, and I tried to.
Huddleston’s truck was later found by police in Fort Worth and returned to him. He suffered a broken leg during the attack but counted his blessings, considering himself lucky to have his truck returned. He also had one final message for the car-jacker. Huddleston said:
By golly, partner. There’s no doubt in my mind you’ve done this before. And I guarantee it’ll catch up to you if you haven’t been caught yet. But you will be caught. You’re a sorry individual.
[image via screengrab; video courtesy Fox 4 News]
Follow Colin Kalmbacher on Twitter: @colinkalmbacher
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