DALLAS – A Dallas business owner is on the offensive after just being missed by a robber’s bullet.
Police said two men robbed the Lion Beverage store in northeast Dallas on Dec. 29. They grabbed money from the register and fired off one shot before getting away with cash.
Owner Giao Nguyen moved to Dallas in 1975 after fleeing the violence of the Vietnam War. So having a gun pointed at his chest during the robbery has stirred dark memories.
“He put it right on my chest. I just moved it away,” Nguyen said. “It’s still scary today. I couldn’t sleep for a whole week. I mean, you know, it’s just like a nightmare.”
It was the second time in four months that he has been robbed at gunpoint. And this time Nguyen said the robbery reminded him of the robbery and murder of Kee Shun Chung , or Mr. Donut Man, just days before Christmas.
Dallas police said armed robberies of businesses dropped form 1268 in 2008 to 1169 in 2009. But that’s little consolation for Nguyen, Chung’s family or any other robbery victims.
Nguyen plans to use his experience as a translator for the police department and Parkland hospital to get the merchants in his area to work together against robbers.
He believes the two men who robbed him came in after casing and trying to steal from another nearby store. So he wants merchants to develop an information sharing plan and a way to check on one another.
“What I want to try to do is somehow get more protection,” he said.
He also hopes someone will recognize the men from his store’s surveillance video. Anyone with information is encouraged to call the Dallas Police Department.
