CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — Have you ever had the feeling you were being followed? In this case it actually happened.
Dennis Wootton stopped at Bank of America on Monday to cash his paycheck.
"There (were) some couple individuals that just, I couldn't understand what they were-situated the way that they were. But, something in my mind told me something just didn't look right," Wootton said.
Wootton noticed some unusual behavior by people outside the bank as well as inside.
After leaving the bank Wootton stopped at H-E-B across the street, to get apple juice and bananas for his grandson. He said he was inside for maybe 5 minutes.
“When I came out, opened the back driver's passenger side to put my bags in there and I noticed my (center) console was flipped up, there was stuff all on the floor. And, I was like "oh man." I opened the front door and the passenger window had been smashed in. The console was flipped up. They knew exactly what they were going for.”
The paycheck he just cashed was gone. Wootton was followed from his bank to the store and someone broke into Wootton’s truck in full daylight.
“My goodness there’s my, there’s my pay. That’s my bill money that’s because I have a lot of medical issues. Going back, I've had 15 heart procedures in 19 years. I've had two open heart surgeries. I had a pacemaker, a defibrillator placed in September. And, I was just thinking all these bills coming up good grief what’s going to happen? Then I felt violated,” he said.
Wootton suspected he was targeted as a vulnerable person. He has to carry around oxygen with him after being diagnosed with pulmonary fibrosis four years ago.
"There's a few things in the truck there that they could have, but they didn't. All they did was saw that envelope and they took it and left.
The surprising thing for Wootton is he’s not the only one this has happened to. He knows of at least two others who've fallen victim to this crime.
Andrew Liaromatis, Program Manager of the Auto Theft Task Force with Corpus Christi Police Department (CCPD) said there’s been 34 cases like this in 2023. It’s a scheme called “jugging.”
“The offenders will kind of hang out and case the area. They will look for certain individuals coming out with bank bags or envelope," Liaromatis explained. "At that point in time, they’ll either follow them to H-E-B or some other errand spot that the victim feels like stopping at and they’ll take the money from their car when they leave it in there. Or, you’ll have a more violent encounter.”
Wootton called police when he realized what happened. The responding officer relayed the same information to him and said this could have been much worse.
"He said if they wouldn't have found that envelope, if I would have stuck it in my pocket or my wallet, they would've waited for me to come out. And, they would've followed me to the house," Wootton said.
The thought of this angered Wootton as he lives with his daughter and grandson.
"You mess with me that's one thing. You mess with my family that's another thing," he said.
Liaromatis confirmed that of the cases reported none have escalated to the victims being followed home.
Between the money stolen and the broken window, Wootton was setback over $3,500. Fortunate for him he has an understanding employer.
“I work for some very good people," he said. "I told them what had happened and the next day they replaced my check. Now I'm going to have to pay that back little by little because that’s all I can do. But without them, it’d be bad.”
Liaromatis said anyone can be a target. CCPD has seen people ages 20 to 80 years old become a victim. He said this has been a crime trend seen in bigger cities and it's been difficult to catch any culprits.
"They're learning from the bigger cities, Houston and Dallas. So, this is happening all the time. They where those gloves they where those ski masks and they are often found in stolen vehicles or altered plates," Liaromatis said.
Police have tracked this happening at over eight banks in the city.
"We are actively running operations to try and catch these guys. We just haven't had any luck this year, yet," Liaromatis said.
Wootton wants people to know this is happening so they can start protecting themselves.
"All I could say to people is, be aware of your surroundings. Watch for people that are just looks like it's out of the ordinary," he said.
Liaromatis said if you see that "out of the ordinary" situation, call the police.
"If you do know that your parent or grandparent is going to take out a large sum, I recommend sending someone with them. If they need that extra assistance, it's never a bad thing to give them that opportunity..." Liaromatis said. "If you are taking out large sums of money, make sure that you’re securing that. Don’t leave the bank with it hanging out in your hand. Don’t open yourself up to a crime of opportunity.”
Wootton said police are investigating who may have robbed him and checking surveillance cameras in the area. He also said H-E-B and Bank of America have been made aware this is happening.
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