Police: Man Robs Family Dollar, Then Kidnaps Woman Who Flags Down Cops
DALLAS (CBSDFW.COM) - A man is in jail, charged with evading arrest, kidnapping and robbery after an active day of crime in Dallas on Tuesday.
Police say Donnell Collins' crime spree started at a Family Dollar on S. Polk Street in Oak Cliff. A worker told police that he used a duffel bag to shoplift from the store. Collins allegedly punched another worker who demanded he return the stolen goods. And despite another worker using a stun gun and trying to lock the 38-year-old in the store, he fled with the stolen goods.
Later in the day, at about 4 p.m., a Dallas patrol officer attempted to conduct a traffic stop on a 2019 silver Honda Civic in the 3600 block of W. Illinois Avenue for speeding in a school zone. When the officer had the car stopped, he saw 61-year-old woman signaling for help from the back seat.
The car then drove away from the officer, and he began to pursue the vehicle. After a short time, the silver Honda Civic crashed into a house.
The female driver, later identified as 31-year-old Ashley Ellison and Collins fled but were taken into custody after a short foot chase.
Ellison was also charged with the evading arrest and the woman's kidnapping. Police say Ellison and the kidnapping victim are acquaintances.
It was during the course of the kidnapping investigation that officers learned Collins had just robbed the Family Dollar on Polk Street a short time before the police chase.