Search ends for Fort Worth man accused of running over Texas disabled veteran

The search for a suspect in the robbery and attack of a disabled veteran in January has ended with the arrest of a Fort Worth man, police said.

In the attack, the assailant is accused of stealing the wallet and truck of a 69-year-old disabled vet at the Shell gas station in the 7300 block of Airport Freeway. The victim suffered a broken leg in the holdup.

An anonymous tip led police to the arrest last week of Gary Lynn Smith, 56.

The holdup occurred shortly before 6:30 a.m. on Jan. 15.

The 69-year-old man parked his pickup near the gas station, exited and was approached by the suspect. The man asked for a cigarette but then jumped into the driver's seat. Immediately, the suspect realized the victim still had the keys, police said.

The suspect got out of the pickup and started fighting the victim for the keys, police said.

The suspect got the keys and stepped back into the pickup, but the Navy veteran managed to pull him out and continued the fight, police said.

In the ensuing struggle, the suspect grabbed the victim's wallet, got back into the pickup and drove away.

But the victim grabbed and held onto the door and was dragged about 15 to 20 feet before he fell to the ground, police said.

Surveillance video shows the suspect drove the truck over the legs of the victim and fled . The pickup was located a few hours later in another city.

Before the robbery, the suspect was seen in the surveillance video approaching other patrons, possibly asking for cigarettes or money.

Smith was in the Tarrant County Jail Sunday with bail set at $76,000.

He faces charges of aggravated robbery and evading arrest, according to Tarrant County jail records.

This story was originally published May 13, 2018 at 7:53 AM with the headline "Search ends for Fort Worth man accused of running over Texas disabled veteran."