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Police, family searching for answers after armed robber fatally shoots Arlington store clerk

Arlington police and the victim’s family are searching for answers after a customer discovered a convenience store clerk fatally shot early Sunday.

The customer called police about 5 a.m. to the E-Z Mart store in the 100 block of East Bardin Road, near Matlock Road. Police found the the clerk on the floor behind the counter.

Family members identified the victim on social media as Jordan Hightower.

His wife, Kristin Reynolds, told WFAA-TV (Channel 8) she learned Hightower had been killed when she arrived at the gas station to pick him up. She said her husband was a giving, caring person who had taken the overnight clerk job at the convenience store with plans to work his way up through the ranks.

“He said, ‘No, I’m going to be the person to work this shift, and I’m going to get into management and take this store over, and it’s going to be a place where everybody can come,” Reynolds told WFAA.

In an interview with KTVT-TV (Channel 11), she said she wanted to see consequences for her husband’s killer.

“He wanted a family and he wanted so many things, and … [the gunman] needs to pay for what he did,” she told the station.

Hightower’s family has set up a GoFundMe for donations to help pay for his funeral.

Police released images from surveillance footage of the fatal shooting of a store clerk early Sunday in Arlington.
Police released images from surveillance footage of the fatal shooting of a store clerk early Sunday in Arlington.(Arlington Police Department)

Police released images from surveillance footage that show the gunman, who was described as a Black male with a slim build and long hair. He wore a red ball cap and jacket and a dark-colored shirt.

He entered the store about 3:30 a.m., shot Hightower multiple times and took several items from the store before he fled, police said.

Arlington police spokesman Lt. Christopher Cook told WFAA-TV that surveillance video of the robbery was horrific.

“Typically a robber will give demands,” he told the station. “This suspect gave no warning and just began firing at the clerk.”

WFAA-TV reported that a few customers walked in shortly after the shooting while the gunman was still inside and asked him what happened. The station reported that audio from the surveillance video captured the suspect saying he shot the clerk.

Arlington police told The Dallas Morning News on Monday that investigators tracked down the two customers who walked in while the gunman was still in the store.

“They thought it was just a fight and didn’t realize the victim was shot,” Cook said. “Either way, we wish they would have called us.”

No calls were made or alarms sounded from the store before the customer who found Hightower walked in more than an hour after the shooting, police said.

E-Z Mart released a written statement Sunday evening with condolences to the victim’s family. The convenience store also said it would be working with police to help find the killer.

Detectives believe that a customer had just exited the store when the gunman arrived.

Anyone with information about the case may contact Detective Jennifer Rodriguez at 817-459-5650. Tips also may be shared anonymously with Tarrant County Crime Stoppers at 817-469-8477.

E-Z Mart is offering a $5,000 reward for information that leads to the identification, arrest and conviction of the suspect, police said.

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