San Angelo Walmart Aggravated Robbery Suspect Remains in Hospital

Gunfire rang out in the parking lot of Walmart at 610 W 29th Monday afternoon, as a man who had just robbed the store’s gun case fled outside and engaged in a confrontation with police.

Dispatch received a call for shots fired in the parking lot of the superstore Monday afternoon at 2:41 p.m., a time when the store itself and the lot outside were bustling with grocery shoppers.

The suspect, 42-year-old Charles D Welborn, witnesses say is either Caucasian or light-complected Hispanic, had entered the store minutes before and stolen a rifle, advising Walmart employees that he had a bomb.

At a media briefing at 5:45 p.m. Monday, San Angelo Chief of Police Tim Vasquez relayed the events leading up to the robbery and the shooting in the parking lot.

"The suspect entered the store, picked up an object—we believe a hammer—from the hardware department, then went to the counter and told the person working...the gun counter that he had a bomb,” the Chief said. “The suspect then crashed the rifle case with the hammer, broke the glass, grabbed a rifle.

Police later learned that after obtaining the rifle, the suspect turned the weapon on several individuals in the store before being confronted by an assistant manager. The manager then wrestled the weapon away from the suspect and he fled to the door.

By now, police, who had initially been dispatched on reports of suspicious behavior, were on their way to the store, and had been updated on the events unfolding inside.

When the police arrived moments later, the suspect had made it to his vehicle in the parking lot; a brown dually pickup parked next to a cart return in a space between the store’s two entrances. Numerous Walmart customers and employees in the lot were pointing at the man, alerting police that he was the suspect they had come for.

Officers surrounded the truck and were ordering the man out of the vehicle, to get on the ground and show his hands, but he failed to comply.

“He began moving around—he entered on the passenger's side—back and forth...it appeared he was trying to get something under the seat," Vasquez said. "When the suspect exited the vehicle, he had a bottle, I believe a beer bottle or a liquor bottle of some sort. He smashed the bottle on the ground and then charged the officer and then shots were fired."

Welborn was hit in the confrontation, and officers immediately begin administering first aid while waiting for the San Angelo Fire Department Medics to arrive.

When the ambulance arrived on scene just before 3:00 p.m., Welborn was transported to Shannon Medical Center, one police car leading and one tailing the emergency vehicle. Welborn’s condition and the extent of his injuries had not been released as of Monday night.

Walmart has been shut down since the arrival of officers Monday afternoon. Emergency responders immediately set up a perimeter around the superstore and blocked all entry points. Cars leaving the parking lot were stopped and eyed for suspicious persons and behavior.

Witnesses were divided into groups according to their location, some providing verbal statements while others composed written ones. 

"This scene is different than most," the Chief said Monday shortly before 4:00 p.m. "There are a couple hundred witnesses and people we're dealing with, so we're working through that right now.”

In the early afternoon, police were detaining two additional men that would have been involved in the incident, however those men were cleared and released a few hours later.

"At this point, we do believe he acted alone," Vasquez said. "We do believe he was in the company of people, but they weren't anywhere near the location.”

Monday afternoon, the Walmart was closed to the public as the SAPD’s Criminal Investigations Division, CSI and the Texas Rangers worked the crime scene. Texas Rangers are always called in when an officer-involved shooting takes place, Vasquez said.

With the aid of the Rangers’ high-tech equipment, the scene is being processed first outdoors in the parking lot, then indoors. The store will remain closed until the investigation on site is completed, and shoppers should avoid both the store and the parking lot.

Aside from the suspect, no one was injured in the incident, however Vasquez said, "I believe that someone could have been in danger at any time. They have a great policy in place here and all the guns have gun locks, so even though the suspect was able to pull a gun out, it had a gun lock on it. That's great. That's information that we weren't aware of before...”

Currently, Welborn is being charged for aggravated robbery, a first-degree felony punishable by up to 99 years in prison and a $10,000 fine. Police have not stated whether more charges may be added pending investigation.