Armed Package Thief Meets Armed Citizen On Steps Of Neighbor’s Home

SPOKANE, OREGON — A suspicious person had been lurking around a neighborhood, and one neighbor took notice and kept an eye on things.

When looking the suspicious person in the eyes, the neighbor figured it might be enough to have him think, “Maybe this isn’t the best area to try and pull of my crimes.”

It wasn’t enough, and it led to much more.

He turned his van around and saw 26-year-old Jeramy Allen reaching for a package outside his neighbor’s home. [John] Hoffman said Allen claimed to know the people inside.

“I said ‘No, you’re going to wait right here. I’m going to call police and we’ll figure this out.’”

Hoffman said that’s when Allen started running.

At this point, I would call the police and give them a description of the suspect. That’s not what happened, though.

“I grab him, throw him to the ground. He’s trying to cause mass chaos. Running, screaming ‘Help! He’s coming after me!’”

In their scuffle, Hoffman said he saw Allen reach for his pocket. “I noticed that he turned on me and pulled a knife.”

That’s when Hoffman pulled out his concealed firearm and pointed it at Allen. Hoffman wasn’t able to keep him there at gunpoint, and Allen took off and ditched the knife the first chance he got.

Police were able to locate and arrest Allen, who was sent to jail on $3,000 bond.

“Either way we’re paying for it I guess,” Hoffman said. “Either they are in the system and we’re paying for it, or they’re out here stealing packages and we’re paying for it.”

Hoffman is lucky in the fact that he didn’t receive any stab wounds from Allen. It’s a dangerous thing to try and grab a suspect in order to hold them for police. You simply don’t know who you’re up against, and you could be creating a life-or-death situation for yourself.

Be mindful of that.