Suspected semi thief hit, killed by truck

A man who tried to steal a semi-truck was run over by another truck early Tuesday morning.

Police said the owner of the semi-truck caught the man stealing his vehicle. He followed him in a pickup truck in south Fort Worth.

At one point the thief was heading the wrong way on the Interstate 35 service road near Risinger Road. Police believe he tried to cross a ditch to get onto the interstate in the right direction, but got stuck.

The semi thief got out of the vehicle and crouched down in the ditch, possibly to hide, police said. The owner pulled up alongside the truck to check on it and accidently ran over the thief. Police were called to the scene just before 4 a.m. Tuesday.

“The owner was able to catch up with his truck, so he took his vehicle to see what happened to his 18-wheeler,” said Fort Worth Police officer Tamara Valle. “When he did that, he ran over the victim, who in this case had stolen the 18-wheeler."

The dead man’s name has not yet been released.

Police said no charges are pending against the truck’s owner, who is cooperating with the investigation.

Fellow North Texas trucker Reggie Lockridge said truck thieves are more common than they seem. He sympathized with the trucker who had to chase down his stolen truck.

“A friend of mine's truck got stolen and it took him about a week to get it back,” Lockridge said. “If it was my truck, I would be following right behind calling 9-1-1.”

Lockridge said truck thieves often want the cargo inside the truck and not just the truck itself.