MAGNOLIA, Texas – Sonia Beltran, 36, a hard-working single mother, spends her nights working the late shift at the Magnolia Super Market on Avenue K, but on Dec. 17, she said she thought she was going to be murdered while on the job, standing in the market.
“He came in with a gun, pointing it at me, telling me to give the money, you know, cussing at me and yelling,” Beltran said.
At that point, Beltran said she thought the gunman, who she identified as Dorian Enrique Nunez, 20, would simply shoot her in the chest and leave her there to die, so Beltran made a mad dash for the safety of the cash register room.
“I didn’t really think," she said. "I just reacted in a split second."
Beltran said she quickly locked the door to the room and hit the panic button under the cash register, which automatically summons the police.
Protected behind a sheet of bullet-proof glass, Beltran said she suddenly recognized the robber as a frequent customer she dealt with almost daily at another convenience store she had worked for.
“He was wearing a blue mask over his face, but no, no, I knew with the mask and everything," she said. "I already knew who he was. The way his eyes were, the way he talked. I tell you, I knew him from the other store. He was a regular customer."
Now, Nunez is on the run and charged with felony aggravated robbery with a deadly weapon. He is wanted by Harris County Precinct 6 Deputy Constables.
Beltran said he left her store without hurting anyone, but she said just as he was about to leave he took his mask off for some reason.
She said that was all she needed to positively identify the man.
Anyone with information on Nunez's whereabouts is asked to call the Precinct 6 Constables Office.
Editor's note: This story originally appeared on KPRC-2.