HARRIS COUNTY, Texas – Three people are facing different charges after investigators say they stole from a Home Depot. And investigators say the trio had children with them during the heist.
Harris County sheriff's deputies say Brandon Garner, 26, and Tony Segura, 37, showed up at the Home Depot on the Eastex Freeway Monday evening looking to pick up some items without paying for them.
Deputies say Garner's girlfriend, 26-year-old Brandalyn Rodriguez, was waiting in a car in the parking lot, while the men took her 6- and 8-year-old sons inside the store with them.
Investigators say Segura took two sets of power tools and Garner even told one of the children to steal too.
They were headed for the exit, but when store security stopped all of them, Garner allegedly made a run for it, leaving Segura and the children behind.
News of the crime shocked some Home Depot shoppers.
"I think that's a bad idea raising them to start little. You never know what they're teenagers, what they're gonna do," said Ester Salazar.
Rodriguez is not accused in the theft, but she was arrested when deputies called Children's Protective Services to the scene and she refused to cooperate.
Rodriguez, Garner and Segura are all being held in the Harris County Jail. Segura is charged with theft, Garner is charged with abandoning a child, and Rodriguez is charged with interfering with duties of a public servant. They each have court appearances scheduled for Wednesday.
The children are staying with relatives.
We checked and found no prior criminal history in Harris County for Rodriguez or Garner, however Segura has a record that includes theft and assault.