Texas dad, daughter chase down thieves after witnessing burglary

A father and daughter in Houston who were arriving home just as burglars were leaving their driveway took matters into their own hands and chased them down.

And they recorded the whole chase on video.

According to CNN, the daughter, 22-year-old Alana, had feared the worst for her sister, Kara, who she had left home to pick up her father, Kevin Smith, at the airport, when they saw the thieves leaving their home in a red pick-up truck just as they were pulling up.

“I locked eyes on them, and their eyes were terrified. I knew that they had done something terrible,” Alana told CNN. “I didn’t know what happened to my sister, and I didn’t know if she was OK. My instinct was this was my only chance to get these guys.”

Alana, who was driving, and Kevin chased the burglars in their car, and when the burglars had enough, they turned around and came furiously racing back towards them — putting both vehicles in a ditch.

All ended well, though, for all the family members and their property.

Kevin suffered no injuries and Alana was released from the hospital later that day after being checked for whiplash. CNN reported that the other daughter, Kara, had been at the gym during the incident.

According to USA Today, police arrived on scene and arrested two of the three burglars. The third suspect got away. The stolen items were retrieved from the truck on scene.

Although police don’t recommend civilians taking the law into their own hands, Kevin, who believes these specific thieves are tied to other burglaries in his neighborhood, says he would do it again.

“I’m tired of these people taking advantage of us,” he told USA Today. “We’re not going to tolerate it anymore in our neighborhood.”

Contact Kira Terry at kterry@reviewjournal.com. Find her on Twitter: @kiraterry