Two Burleson officers shot during bank holdup

A robbery suspect fleeing a bank opened fire on police Friday afternoon, sending two officers to a Fort Worth hospital.

Detective David Feucht, a 23-year veteran of the Burleson force, had surgery for multiple gunshot wounds and was in stable condition Friday night, a city spokeswoman said.

Detective Nick Grace, a Burleson officer for 10 years, had a minor leg wound and was released after being treated at John Peter Smith Hospital in Fort Worth, authorities said.

The suspect was arrested but had not been identified by late Friday.

At 12:07 p.m., police responded to a report of a suspicious person at a Wells Fargo bank at 435 E. Renfro St., said officer Jae Berg, a Burleson police spokesman.

“They were told that the [person] the employees had called about passed one teller a note and that teller cooperated, giving him an undisclosed amount of cash,” Berg said.

“After accepting the cash, the suspect walked out of the bank toward a 7-Eleven convenience store.”

Feucht and Grace, who are plainclothes detectives, had been monitoring the radio traffic. They offered to assist and went to the 7-Eleven, Berg said.

After they identified themselves as police officers, “the suspect opened fire on the officers, wounding them both,” Berg said. “At least one of the officers was able to get off one round, but whether both officers fired and how many rounds they may have fired is not known at this point.”

A.J. Bonham, an employee at a Mobil gas station and convenience store near the bank, said he saw the assailant in the 7-Eleven parking lot and heard one gunshot.

“Then we heard about five or six other gunshots go off in rapid succession,” Bonham said. “We weren’t scared, but maybe more interested.”

Bonham said customers in the 7-Eleven and at a nearby Waffle House were evacuated.

Kalvin Walker, Bonham’s friend, said he also heard the gunfire.

“I thought [the gunshots were] a tire blowing out at first from the tire place down the street,” he said. “And then we heard five or six shots go off.”

Police recovered a semiautomatic handgun and cash at the scene.

It could not be learned Friday whether either officer was wearing a protective vest.

Police searched the area for other possible suspects and vehicles that may have been used in the robbery.

The suspect was being interviewed by investigators and will be transferred to a holding facility in Burleson before being taken to the Johnson County Jail, Berg said.

The suspect faces charges including aggravated assault on a public servant, attempted capital murder of a public servant and aggravated robbery.

This story was originally published December 19, 2014 at 1:55 PM with the headline "Two Burleson officers shot during bank holdup."