SAN ANTONIO – A man accused of stealing 2,500 rounds of ammunition from a Walmart in Helotes has a history of theft arrests, police said.
Helotes police Capt. Anthony Burgess said the man, whose name has not been released, is awaiting trial in at least one of the cases.
The man's latest arrest happened around 5 a.m. Friday by Helotes and San Antonio police officers, who tracked down the man near Loop 1604 and Hausman Road, Burgess said.
"One of my officers is talking to him right now to see if he can get an idea (of why he stole the ammunition)," he said. "But he, pretty much, has tightened up a little bit."
Burgess said the man walked into a Walmart near Leslie and Bandera roads, removed the ammo from a glass case and carried the items out the door.
"The initial report was there was glass breakage, but he jimmied it open," he said. "There was no glass breakage."
Officers received the call about the theft around 2:30 a.m. and quickly spotted the suspect in his SUV. They chased him for 2 miles to the Bavarian Forest subdivision, where he crashed into a fence. He then ran from the vehicle, Burgess said.
Police lost sight of the man after he ran into a drainage ditch. They noticed that he left behind the stolen ammo.
"Our guys recovered about 2,500 rounds. .40 (caliber), 9 (millimeter) and 5.56," Burgess said. "We don't believe that he threw any out the windows. They said in the course of his driving activities, he wouldn't have had the time."
Burgess said officers originally were told that more than 5,000 rounds had been stolen. However, he said he believes it may have been an accidental overestimation on the part of Walmart employees.