Crime Victim Fights Back

Citizens fight back against a criminal. Citizen crime fighters are the reason a suspected burglar is behind bars. <br/><br/>News on 6 crime reporter Lori Fullbright says instinct and adrenaline caused

Monday, November 6th 2006, 4:31 pm

By: News On 6

Citizens fight back against a criminal. Citizen crime fighters are the reason a suspected burglar is behind bars.

News on 6 crime reporter Lori Fullbright says instinct and adrenaline caused these victims to jump into action and chase a burglar through a neighborhood. Now, with a few hours to reflect on it, at least one of them says he probably wouldn't do it again. What he might do instead, is buy a gun.

Thereâ€™s nothing like waking up to a stranger in your house. "He says I'm sorry I woke you, go back to sleep and started walking toward the back of my house," said burglary victim Mark.

Mark chased the suspect to the backdoor and grabbed his shirt, then thought better of it and let him go. When police couldn't find the suspect Mark went looking on his own.

After driving around the neighborhood for 45 minutes, Mark came back down his street and saw the same man, this time being confronted by a woman and two men. The woman said he'd just been in her house trying to steal her purse. That's when the chase was on. "He pulled out a knife and starts swinging it at everybody, then starts running and he starts running down the street and up my driveway," Mark said.

Mark jumped out of his truck and took off running after the suspect, talking to 911 on his cell phone the whole time. He lost the bad guy briefly, then, got a real shock. "Here comes my truck. He came back over here and got in my truck and stole it and was coming down 14th Street," said Mark.

Tulsa Police took over the chase until the suspect crashed Mark's truck into a pole. He took off running one more time and was confronted by yet another citizen.

The suspect pulled out his knife again and the citizen pulled out a gun, that pretty much ended it and police arrested 36 year old Gary Wilson[pictured]. He was booked into jail on 11 different counts.

"It seemed like a cartoon, the whole thing did and I couldn't believe I was in it, but, I was just mad enough to do it and chase him so that's what I did," Mark said.

Police say in addition to the knife, Wilson had a gun on him, but, it wasn't loaded. Wilson is an ex-con.

The citizen who pulled the gun on him did have a carry and conceal permit, so he's not in trouble. Of course, police don't recommend you chase criminals, but, people are so sick of crime they just react and in this case, at least, it turned out well.