64-year-old man thwarts attack at Fort Worth store by spraying gasoline on suspect

Fort Worth police said after they released surveillance images on Wednesday, the community helped to identify four robbery suspects accused of attacking a 64-year-old Newark man while he was pumping gas at a QuikTrip on Northside Drive.

One of the suspects sprayed the man with a unknown chemical, which caused him extreme pain, and the other three suspects opened the doors to the victim’s car, police said in a news release.

The man thwarted the attack when he sprayed one of the group with gasoline.

Detectives released photographs of the young robbers on Wednesday in hope that someone would recognize them and contact authorities. The images came from a surveillance camera.

Police initially said the suspects were believed to be two men and two women between the ages of 17 to 19 years old. After they were identified, police said the suspects are juveniles and deleted the photos that had been shared on social media.

The attack occurred about 4:45 a.m. on July 9 at the QuikTrip at 109 E. Northside Drive.

The 64-year-old man was at a gas pump when he was approached by an unknown person, police said. The attacker sprayed the victim with the chemical, but the victim sprayed him back with gasoline and the suspects fled the scene, police said.

But the crew returned a short time later and sprayed the 64-year-old man a second time with the chemical. This time the man ran toward the store as the suspects ran across North Main Street.

Detectives noted that before the 64-year-old man was attacked the group had followed at least one other customer to a car parked near the front of the store, but they eventually turned away.

Anyone with information should call Fort Worth police at 817-392-4469.