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This happen in my home town...
Wounded barber now packing gun
Troy Hafford considers himself quite fortunate.
Two bullet wounds he suffered to his legs during an altercation Saturday at Bill and Troy's Barber Shop, 204 North Allis St., have not caused major problems, he said.
In fact, Hafford was back at his business, laughing and cutting hair with his father Monday afternoon.
"I'm really fortunate," Hafford told The Jonesboro Sun. "My legs are doing pretty good, and the bone specialist doesn't think I'll have any problems with infections."
Hafford, who's been a barber on North Allis for some 34 years, suffered the bullet wounds about 2:50 p.m. Saturday when an individual he described as "a really young kid" shot him once in each leg with a .25-caliber pistol during an attempted robbery.
The bullets, Hafford added, remain in his legs.
"Yep, both bullets are still there," he said, limping slightly but showing little discomfort. "My specialist said if they did cause any problems he'd get them out of there."
Investigators with the Jonesboro Police Department said Monday they were still searching for the shooter and will continue looking until a suspect is in custody.
"Officers contacted several people in the area," said Detective Lt. Lynn Waterworth, when asked if the investigation had turned up a suspect. "We tried to thoroughly canvass the area within one-half mile for anyone who even vaguely fit the description, and nothing has panned out yet."
Hafford, wearing a .357-caliber revolver on his side Monday afternoon, described his attacker as "a really young kid, probably about 15 years old, 110 to 120 pounds, dark, wavy hair, dark eyes, and wearing a brown T-shirt with a brown sun on it, like a picture."
The barber also said the suspect is dark-skinned, but "definitely a white male." He said the person is about 5 feet, 8 inches tall and was wearing a bandana-like cloth over the bottom half of his face.
Asked if the revolver on his belt was permitted, Hafford said he didn't have a permit but he did speak to authorities about the gun after the shooting. He said police told him as long as he keeps the revolver inside the shop, he can use it for protection.
"I will eventually get a permit for it," he said. "I just haven't had the chance."
Hafford, a nursing student at Arkansas State University, said he was working on a term paper for an English class in his back office when the assailant entered the business, jangling the bell above the door "like a regular customer."
"My paper was on the movie 'The Italian Job,'" he said. "I thought that was kind of funny. The subject of my essay was deception of Hollywood and how they make young people believe they can get away with anything."
Hafford showed reporters the hallway where the attack occurred and said he actually thought it was a joke when the individual started demanding money.
"I mean, nothing ever happens to me," he said. "And I didn't even feel anything at first, didn't even really know I was shot."
He said when the first bullet struck him in the right shin, he told the assailant, "Jesus loves you!"
"Well, he got mad as a hornet then," Hafford said, grinning. "He shot me again, this time in my other leg."
The second bullet struck the barber's left knee, sending him to the floor.
Hafford said as he went down, the attacker lunged as if to strike him in the face.
"I used to box when I was younger, and knowing that the top of my head was a lot harder than my face, I lowered my head and he hit me with the gun," he said.
Hafford said he grew "angry" at that point and "went after him." He said the assailant ran out the door and disappeared down the street.
It was then, Hafford said, that he realized he'd been shot. He said he called 911.
"I'm really fortunate, though, that I didn't get my hands on the kid," Hafford said. "He could have put the gun to my chest and pulled the trigger, and I might have had a collapsed lung or something worse."
He said in the end, the attacker escaped with none of the shop's money.
"I've been here for 34 years and never had any trouble," Hafford said. "I guess times are changing in Jonesboro."
http://www.jonesborosun.com/story.asp?ID=5492
Wounded barber now packing gun
Troy Hafford considers himself quite fortunate.
Two bullet wounds he suffered to his legs during an altercation Saturday at Bill and Troy's Barber Shop, 204 North Allis St., have not caused major problems, he said.
In fact, Hafford was back at his business, laughing and cutting hair with his father Monday afternoon.
"I'm really fortunate," Hafford told The Jonesboro Sun. "My legs are doing pretty good, and the bone specialist doesn't think I'll have any problems with infections."
Hafford, who's been a barber on North Allis for some 34 years, suffered the bullet wounds about 2:50 p.m. Saturday when an individual he described as "a really young kid" shot him once in each leg with a .25-caliber pistol during an attempted robbery.
The bullets, Hafford added, remain in his legs.
"Yep, both bullets are still there," he said, limping slightly but showing little discomfort. "My specialist said if they did cause any problems he'd get them out of there."
Investigators with the Jonesboro Police Department said Monday they were still searching for the shooter and will continue looking until a suspect is in custody.
"Officers contacted several people in the area," said Detective Lt. Lynn Waterworth, when asked if the investigation had turned up a suspect. "We tried to thoroughly canvass the area within one-half mile for anyone who even vaguely fit the description, and nothing has panned out yet."
Hafford, wearing a .357-caliber revolver on his side Monday afternoon, described his attacker as "a really young kid, probably about 15 years old, 110 to 120 pounds, dark, wavy hair, dark eyes, and wearing a brown T-shirt with a brown sun on it, like a picture."
The barber also said the suspect is dark-skinned, but "definitely a white male." He said the person is about 5 feet, 8 inches tall and was wearing a bandana-like cloth over the bottom half of his face.
Asked if the revolver on his belt was permitted, Hafford said he didn't have a permit but he did speak to authorities about the gun after the shooting. He said police told him as long as he keeps the revolver inside the shop, he can use it for protection.
"I will eventually get a permit for it," he said. "I just haven't had the chance."
Hafford, a nursing student at Arkansas State University, said he was working on a term paper for an English class in his back office when the assailant entered the business, jangling the bell above the door "like a regular customer."
"My paper was on the movie 'The Italian Job,'" he said. "I thought that was kind of funny. The subject of my essay was deception of Hollywood and how they make young people believe they can get away with anything."
Hafford showed reporters the hallway where the attack occurred and said he actually thought it was a joke when the individual started demanding money.
"I mean, nothing ever happens to me," he said. "And I didn't even feel anything at first, didn't even really know I was shot."
He said when the first bullet struck him in the right shin, he told the assailant, "Jesus loves you!"
"Well, he got mad as a hornet then," Hafford said, grinning. "He shot me again, this time in my other leg."
The second bullet struck the barber's left knee, sending him to the floor.
Hafford said as he went down, the attacker lunged as if to strike him in the face.
"I used to box when I was younger, and knowing that the top of my head was a lot harder than my face, I lowered my head and he hit me with the gun," he said.
Hafford said he grew "angry" at that point and "went after him." He said the assailant ran out the door and disappeared down the street.
It was then, Hafford said, that he realized he'd been shot. He said he called 911.
"I'm really fortunate, though, that I didn't get my hands on the kid," Hafford said. "He could have put the gun to my chest and pulled the trigger, and I might have had a collapsed lung or something worse."
He said in the end, the attacker escaped with none of the shop's money.
"I've been here for 34 years and never had any trouble," Hafford said. "I guess times are changing in Jonesboro."
http://www.jonesborosun.com/story.asp?ID=5492
