Arlington Officer Pistol-Whipped In Attack Outside Gas Station

Arlington, TX – An Arlington police officer was violently pistol-whipped by four attackers during a robbery at a gas station on Wednesday morning.

The incident occurred at a QuickTrip store near the intersection of North Collins Street and East Division Street at approximately 7:30 a.m., KXAS reported.

The unidentified Arlington police officer had just wrapped up his night shift and stopped by the gas station to fuel up his vehicle when he spotted a white, four-door car weaving past the various pump stations, Arlington Police Lieutenant Christopher Cook told reporters.

The officer immediately realized something was wrong when he saw three men jump out of the car while a fourth man slid behind the wheel of the vehicle, Lt. Cook explained.

Without saying a word, the three suspects attacked the off-duty officer and knocked him to the ground, KTVT reported.

They viciously pistol-whipped him in the face and head during the assault, Lt. Cook told KXAS.

“One of the suspects demanded his wallet. He did have a firearm on his person, the officer did, but it was again covered up by the jacket,” the lieutenant said, according to KTVT. “He didn’t want them [suspects] to find out that he was armed, because he felt like there could be multiple suspects that had guns as well.”

The injured officer handed over his cell phone and wallet, at which point the suspects jumped back into the white sedan and sped off.

The officer drew his personal firearm as the robbers were fleeing the scene, KTVT reported.

“Once the suspects jumped in the car, he then did pull his firearm out, the officer did, and draw down on the vehicle,” Lt. Cook explained. “But at that time, he heard one of them say, ‘He’s got a gun,’ and they peeled out of the parking lot and left.”

Investigators said the officer was wearing a civilian jacket over his uniform and had his duty belt and other uniform attire in the back seat of his vehicle at the time of the attack, so it is unclear whether or not the suspects realized he was a law enforcement officer, KXAS reported.

Dallas PD was able to locate the suspect vehicle and arrested the suspects, who are all juveniles.

I spoke with our officer this morning. He’s in good spirits and will be okay. Help us identify these suspects. This could have happened to anybody in our community. https://t.co/jKDkULlBV9

— Chief Al Jones (@ChiefArlington) January 27, 2021

Great news! @DallasPD made a traffic stop on the suspect car today that was related to the assault and robbery of our officer. All the suspects are juveniles. Three of the juveniles have been taken into custody. pic.twitter.com/51S9dFYNbj

— Chief Al Jones (@ChiefArlington) January 27, 2021

The officer suffered injuries to his face and the top of his head due to the violent attack, but he refused to go to the hospital, KTVT reported.

He is expected to recover from his injuries.

The officer, struck multiple times on the face and top of the head by a pistol, will be okay. Suspects are described as young males, possibly teens or early 20s. The suspect car had a paper tag on it. Video coming soon. pic.twitter.com/AhdngSgnNP

— Arlington Police, TX (@ArlingtonPD) January 27, 2021

“I spoke with our officer this morning. He’s in good spirits and will be okay,” Arlington Police Chief Al Jones tweeted later in the morning. “Help us identify these suspects. This could have happened to anybody in our community.”