The first sign of trouble was how little money 32-year-old Qwinntavus Kwame Jordan got in his haul.
Early that morning, he allegedly robbed the Circle K gas station on State Road 100 East in Palm Coast in northeastern Florida. For all his effort he only made off with $90. With many entry level jobs now paying $15 or more per hour, that’s less than a full day’s worth of honest labor.
Determined not to settle for just $90, Jordan managed to get even more loot. Deputies said he demanded the clerk hand over a pack of cigars, put $5 on the gas pump and give him quarters so he could inflate his tires.
Properly inflated tires, as we all know, increase gas mileage and help the environment.
For reasons unknown, police say Jordan then fled up I-95 towards Georgia. Flagler County deputies reportedly used “investigative means” — as they described it on their Facebook page — to determine where he was headed.
Jordan was then spotted by the St. John’s County Sheriff’s Office.
Deputies were joined in hot pursuit by the Florida Highway Patrol, the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office, and the Nassau County Sheriff’s office on I-95. That continued until the alleged robber crossed into the Peach State, where the Camden County Sheriff’s Office then took over.
The Kingsland Police Department spread stop sticks across the road to welcome Jordan to town, and this damaged his vehicle enough to where he came to a halt.
Determined not to let that inconvenience ruin his day, Jordan jumped out of the vehicle with now-deflated tires and fled on foot. Not far away he came upon a convenience store and apparently decided that if one robbery was that successful, a second would be an even better idea.
According to police, Jordan drew his weapon and demanded that the store clerk hand over their car keys. Now having access to another getaway vehicle, he jumped into the car with the intention of continuing his joyride.
But something strange happened on the way out of the parking lot. Instead of getting back onto the highway, Jordan somehow managed to crash the clerk’s vehicle into the store.
There’s no word if the vehicle was equipped with a manual transmission, rendering it inoperable to anyone below a certain age.
Now apparently stuck at the scene of his second armed robbery of the day, Jordan determined the best course of action would be to exit his second useless vehicle and reenter the store. There he reportedly chased the clerk through the building.
Perhaps he was angry over not being warned that the employee’s car had a stick shift.
Unfortunately for Jordan, his previous victim was now armed and managed to shoot the alleged robber eight times. Police then descended on the establishment and took the adventuresome alleged criminal into custody.
He was reportedly transported to a local hospital in critical condition. It was determined later that Jordan was a fugitive wanted for an armed robbery committed in recent days in Coffee County, Georgia. Police say they are unsure why he was in Flagler County Friday morning.
Flagler County Sheriff Rick Staley praised his deputies and all assisting agencies for apprehending Jordan. His praise did not stop there.
“I also commend the Georgia store clerk that put a swift end to this dirtbag’s crime spree.” Staley added that if Jordan survives, “he should spend a long time in prison.”
It is our wish, of course, that Jordan fully recovers and faces the music for his brief but dramatic crime spree. It should be quite an entertaining explanation as to what exactly was going through his mind on Friday as he allegedly robbed two convenience stores, crashed two cars, and managed to get himself shot in the process.
Officials describe the investigation as “active and ongoing” as several law enforcement agencies were involved in Jordan’s apprehension.
