From the "Dumb Crooks" Files

Three against one. The three had at least one firearm, but the one had his wits about him.

From The Star Telegram:

By Bill Miller

Quick thinker lures carjackers into trap

A quick-thinking Dallas man lured three would-be carjackers into a trap that resulted in their arrests early Sunday at D/FW Airport, police said.

The incident began about 11:45 p.m. Saturday as Theodore Owens, 45, who had just parked outside a friend’s house in the 9200 block of Sweetwater Drive in Dallas, was attacked by three teenage men, said Senior Cpl. Donna Hernandez, police spokeswoman.

"He was struck in the face with the butt of a gun," Hernandez said. "When they discovered he didn’t have much money, they discussed ways to get more money."

Owens, however, persuaded them to drive with him in his car to the airport where he worked for a company that provides curbside baggage handling.

He told them that he would withdraw money from the ATM at his credit union which was behind the security gate, Hernandez said. After parking outside a terminal, two of the suspects stayed with the car and one man went with Owens to the security gate.

"But the suspect obviously couldn’t get through security, so he told him to wait there while he went inside to the credit union," Hernandez said.

But once he cleared the gate he got to a phone and called 911, Hernandez said. Airport security officers then arrested the two men back at the car and arrested the third suspect nearby.

That was some quick thinking, and most likely even quicker talking.