When four men saw a pizza delivery guy walking, they made the decision to try to rob him. Unfortunately for them, they didn’t get a clear look at his face. If they had, they wouldn’t have made such a foolish mistake.
Beggars Pizza got a last minute call, just before closing time, for a pizza from four hungry thugs in Harvey, Illinois. They had hatched a plan they’d soon regret. Although the four men had intended to steal the pizza and assault the delivery guy, who they likely assumed would be young, scrawny, and ill-prepared to take them on, they thought wrong.
The Illinois thugs had no idea who they were about to be up against when they decided to attack the delivery guy since only one man was still on the job to deliver their last minute order. Although he didn’t know it was a set up until he arrived and was viciously attacked, he quickly showed the four punks that they had bit off more than they could chew — and we’re not talking about their pizza.
The hoodrats realized that they made one massive mistake when they learned who the delivery driver was. As it turned out, all the regular drivers had already gone home, so the pizza shop’s owner decided to deliver the pizzas himself, according to the Chicago Tribune. While that might not sound all that intimidating at first, this pizza joint was owned by the now state senator Napoleon Harris.
If you’re still not impressed, you must not be familiar with Harris’s history, and apparently, these punks didn’t know all that much about the businessman when they plotted their attack. While Harris was walking towards the door, three of the men jumped out of the bushes to attack him only to receive the shock of their lives. The senator and Beggars Pizza owner wasn’t the scrawny, teenage delivery boy for which they had likely hoped.
Instead, Napoleon Harris just so happens to be 6-foot-2, but that’s not all. If you’re a football fan, his name should sound familiar since he’s also a 250-pound former NFL linebacker. Once a football star at Thornton High School, Harris later went on to play for the Oakland Raiders, Kansas City Chiefs, and Minnesota Vikings. Although he was outnumbered, the thugs would find themselves to be no match for Harris.
They struck him, attempted to put him in a chokehold, and managed to run off with his wallet, but not for long. After Harris fought them off, they made their way to a getaway car with his wallet and the pizza, but he wasn’t done with them yet. While driving after them, Harris called the police and chased the assailants into a lumberyard where they were forced to flee on foot. By that point, however, cops were already well on their way.
With Harris’s help, police would eventually manage to catch up with three of the suspects and arrest them. But, not just for the stolen pizza and assault on Harris. Their story and crimes went much deeper than that as authorities quickly learned, all thanks to Harris chasing these thugs down, even if they did briefly get away.
It turned out theft wasn’t the only crime these thugs may have committed. After the suspects were forced to run away on foot and leave their Chevy Tahoe behind, authorities investigated and realized the vehicle had blood in it. Upon investigation, it was learned the SUV was stolen and belonged to Lester “Roy” Jones, whom authorities later found dead in Georgia. The blood was a match for Jones.
Harvey police provided their information to Georgia law enforcement officials as well as a tip that the suspects had gotten on a bus leaving Chicago for Atlanta. As a result, Malik Mayer and a juvenile were taken into custody upon their arrival in Georgia. Mayer was charged with murder, kidnapping, aggravated assault, theft, and two counts of financial transaction card fraud, according to reports.
A third person, Lawrence Hines, was arrested after he checked himself into a mental hospital in Atlanta when officials there became suspicious of his conduct and notified police of his whereabouts. Murder charges were filed against him, although Fulton County sheriff’s police said more charges could be sought. FBI officials in Atlanta also said Hines is wanted for a 2015 incident in Burlington, Iowa.
So, not only did the senator and former football player help to catch a few thieves, Harris may have also helped track down murderers. Not bad for a pizza “delivery man’s” one night on the job. But, Harris is just glad the rest of his staff is safe. “[Harris] feels he was better capable of handling this incident than they would have been,” said police spokesman Sean Howard. “They were expecting a scrawny 5-foot-9 guy, and got Harris instead.”
