Cameras Catch Shootout With Dallas Tow Truck Driver

DALLAS (CBSDFW.COM) - Esau Vences of Dallas knows that every time he tows a vehicle, somebody is bound to be angry. "It is very dangerous. I got a wife and two little girls," explained the 29-year-old driver.

Vences was towing a van, just after midnight, Sunday from the Westwood Apartment Complex in northwest Dallas. That's when he heard the first shot. "They shot another two shots. I looked back and sure enough, they're shooting," recalled Vences. "So I got my pistol and I look back and I shoot it."

Camera video from Vences' truck shows two men rushing toward him. One man reaches into his jacket and appears to pull something out. Vences says it was a gun and he had no choice but to pull his licensed handgun and fire back. The bullet struck the man, but did not kill him.

Dallas police however, arrested Vences. He was later released after police watched the video.

There are four cameras on Vences' tow truck. The father of two says if not for the cameras, he would still be sitting in jail.

Vences is employed by Longhorn Wreckers. In May of last year, two towers for Longhorn were fired upon at an apartment complex  in northwest Dallas. One employee was killed, the other employee returned fire and killed the gunman.

Tow truck cameras also captured that shooting. "That's the whole reason I put them up," said Patrick Grahmann, a manager for Longhorn Wreckers. "Everybody has a story and it's never the right story when it comes to towing. The cameras never lie," added Grahmann.

Dallas police are still investigating the shooting, but so far, no charges have been filed.