One had a Louis Vuitton bag, the other a baby. Both stopped robbers in their own way
Two men stood their ground when faced with violent robbers this week, authorities said. One man protected his 1-year-old daughter — the other his Louis Vuitton handbag.
A would-be robber approached 31-year-old Jerad Kluting on Monday afternoon in Holland Township, Michigan, and demanded that he give up his designer bag, Kluting said. The $1,700 bag is valuable not just for it’s high price, but also because it’s no longer being produced, the Holland Sentinel reported.
Police said the suspect was “intent on stealing the victim’s designer bag,” the newspaper reported. But Kluting said he refused to hand it over.
"I was like, ‘You’re not getting my Louis Vuitton.' I worked very hard for this and this bag I’ve had forever and it means a lot to me,” he told WOOD TV.
That’s when the alleged robber took out a gun and fired multiple shots at Kluting. Kluting told WOOD he believes the first two shots were meant to scare him, but the third could have been deadly. Kluting says the robber missed.
The handbag holds special significance for Kluting, who says he doesn’t regret challenging the robber.
"It means a lot to me. … It represents me,” Kluting told WOOD. "He can pry it out of my cold dead hands."
The stakes were even higher for a man in Memphis, Tennessee, the next day. Martavious Conner, 21, said he was leaving McDonald’s on Tuesday afternoon, holding his daughter, when someone asked him for a lighter. Suddenly four men attacked and robbed him, FOX 13 reported.
"I'm getting choked out from the back, then I'm getting hit all in my face," he told the news station. "And I have her in my hands at the time."
Conner managed to get to his car — where he placed his daughter — grab his gun and shoot at the group, Commercial Appeal reported. One of the suspects was struck.
The suspects took Conner’s gun and then fled, the newspaper reported.
Conner told FOX 13 he was on the ground losing consciousness during the beating, but hearing his child scream kept him going.
Police have apprehended the suspects in both cases.
This story was originally published May 17, 2018 at 4:41 PM with the headline "One had a Louis Vuitton bag, the other a baby. Both stopped robbers in their own way."