BEAUMONT, Texas — A man accused of aggravated robbery and auto theft is behind bars after a neighbor tipped off the Port Arthur police about his location Friday night, according to a news release from the Port Arthur Police Department.
It happened Saturday night around 10:30 p.m. when officers received a call about a stolen car in the 5000 block of Dryden Road.
The caller said a woman was hurt, and it was unclear if she had been hit by a car, according to the release.
During the investigation, officers learned that the woman was injured during the commission of the theft of the vehicle, the release says. She received minor injuries from the incident.
Officers were told the suspect was driving north on Memorial Blvd. Police have identified the suspect as 30-year-old Samuel Gardner.
Gardner struck a Port Arthur Police patrol unit at the intersection of Memorial Blvd. and 39th Street later that night. There, he ditched the car and left the scene on foot. The officer involved was unharmed, police said.
A Port Arthur resident later called the police claiming there was a “suspicious male” in the nearby area where Gardner was last seen. Officers reported to the scene and arrested him.
Gardner is booked in the Jefferson County jail on a $30,000 bail for the aggravated robbery charge and $10,000 for unauthorized use of a motor vehicle, jail records show.
The investigation is ongoing with the Port Arthur Police Department's Criminal Investigations Division. We will update with more if and when we receive more confirmed information.
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