HOUSTON – A woman accused of looting during Hurricane Harvey was arrested Wednesday by officers from the Oak Ridge North Police Department.
They were assigned to look for her by Chief Andrew Walters as a gesture of thanks to the Houston Police Department for its help during the storm.
The arrested woman is accused, along with others, of looting Leon Ruffin’s liquor store, R&Y Liquor, in the Sunnyside neighborhood in south Houston.
The looters wiped out Ruffins inventory. He says he won’t reopen.
"This last go around ... It's over," Ruffin said last Friday.
The only suspect police could identify was 37-year-old Tiffany Barrie, who was arrested but released because officers couldn’t transport her to jail through the high flood water.
Walters saw the story on KPRC and decided to put his warrant officers on Barrie’s trial. He says he did it out of compassion for Ruffin, and as a way of thanking HPD.
“During the storm, the Houston chief told his officers if they can’t make it in, go to a local police station and tell the chief there I said you could come out and work there,” Walters said.
During the flooding, the Oak Ridge North department of about 20 officers was reinforced by five Houston officers.
So Walters decided to return the favor with a favor for Houston Chief Art Acevado.
“I felt a little bit of an obligation to pay him back for it,” Walters said.
The department’s warrant officers, accompanied by Harris County sheriff’s deputies began searching for Barrie on Wednesday morning in south Houston. They found her at a house in the 3800 block of Rosemont.
She’s charged with burglary of a building, a third-degree felony.
Wednesday afternoon, Acevedo sent out a statement thanking Walters and his officers.
“This gesture by the Chief is reflective of our philosophy in law enforcement: of working together and using our resources in the region as a united front to fight crime and serve our communities. I appreciate and thank Chief Walters and his agency for help in bringing this suspect to justice.”