HOUSTON – Houston police are searching for a man who is believed to be responsible for a pair of robberies, including a home invasion in which a 4-year-old girl was threatened with a gun.
According to court documents, both robberies happened within minutes of each other in the middle of the day at the San Marcos apartments in Southwest Houston on Aug. 28.
First, police said Gabriel Pipkin, 20, and Dajhun Barber, 19, broke into apartment No. 270, where Jonathan Rosas and his 4-year-old cousin were taking a nap on the couch.
"When I tried to get up, they pointed the gun at her," Rosas said. "I thought they would maybe kill her. That’s why I was so scared."
Pipkin and Barber took off with two laptops, two smart phones, the keys to both family cars, and $250, Rosas said.
Minutes later, in a different section of the apartment complex near the back exit, surveillance cameras captured Pipkin and Barber attacking another resident, who we are identifying as Mr. Cruz.
He can be seen in a video walking with Crystal Williams, who he said asked him for help with her broken-down car.
"The bandits attacked me," Mr. Cruz said in Spanish. "They said ‘Money! Money! Money! Money!'"
The robbers searched Mr. Cruz’s pockets and stole his rent money, $900.
The following Wednesday, a week later, Pipkin and Barber returned to the apartment complex and stole Rosas’ Chevy Camaro using the keys they took during the home invasion.
Houston police officers used the Camaro’s tracker to find the suspects, who they said were “driving recklessly in a hotel parking lot.”
Pipkin and Barber confessed to both robberies, according to court documents. Pipkin admitted to pointing the pistol at the 4-year-old.
Police booked the men on charges of unauthorized use a vehicle on Sept. 5, the Thursday before the long holiday weekend.
Barber bonded out the next day. The following Monday, Sept. 9, Houston police presented the court with evidence and the Harris County District Attorney’s Office accepted charges of aggravated robbery with a deadly weapon against Pipkin and Barber.
The DA’s Office also charged Williams aggravated robbery with a deadly weapon. Williams is accused of pretending to need help with her car.