A security guard at a Texas cardroom was wounded this week as he tackled an armed gunman to the ground, Trelynn Robinson suffering a bullet graze and dislocated shoulder in the incident…
The gunman entered Legends Poker Room in Houston at around 1:30am on Monday morning, armed with an AR-15 assault rifle, and declared he was robbing the place.
With more than 40 patrons in the cardroom, a potential horror story was in the offing – a modified AR-15 capable of firing 400 rounds per minute and one of the weapons used by the gunman in the Las Vegas Route 91 Harvest music festival massacre.
Trelynn Robinson, who goes by the nickname “Tek”, quickly pounced on the armed robber, tackling him to the ground. Roughly a dozen gunshots rang out as Robinson and others wrestled with the assailant, though incredibly nobody was seriously hurt.
Robinson told local ABC News affiliates , “…he was asking me to give him the money, but instead I lunged towards him… fought him, wrestled him with the gun, it started to go off.
Eventually, Robinson says, “I was able to tackle him down and put the handcuffs on him, arrest him.”
Police Lieutenant Larry Crowson told local news outlets that the gun discharged “10 to 15 times,” and added, “We’re very fortunate nobody was shot and that the security officer was able to get the male into custody.”
The brave security guard was grazed by one of the gunshots and also has a dislocated shoulder, with a GoFundMe launched by one of the cardroom’s dealers to help Robinson with medical bills.
Sean Benefiel launched the campaign, which has so far raised over $2000 of its $50,000 target. He wrote: “Tonight there was an attempted robbery in our room. The person responsible for the shooting was miraculously stopped by the actions of an incredibly brave man.
“Our security guard Trelynn “Tek” Robinson ran TOWARDS the guy firing an automatic weapon and wrestled with him, stopping him from opening fire on a room with more than 120 people in it. I was probably ten feet from where the bullets hit the wall.”
Benefiel added, “What Tek did was the bravest thing I have ever seen in my life. Without a doubt; this man saved my life, and the lives of every person who was in the room at the time.”
I will definitely throw this man some $$.100 from me my man. Great job
Show some love for a true hero Trelynn Robinson https://t.co/uHuGctotPI— scot munro (@scot_munro) January 17, 2022
The Houston poker scene seems unable to keep itself out of the news headlines recently, with stories ranging from Johnny Chan’s cardroom changing hands after being hit by a scandal, to Sammy Farha being smacked down for smack talking, to news that Doug Polk, Andrew Neeme and Brad Owen have teamed up to buy a chunk of one of the city’s poker rooms.
Legends Poker Room, where the Farha incident and the attempted armed robbery both took place, was one of the subjects of a recent undercover video by Dolcefino Consulting.
The video states, “Harris County District Attorney Kim Ogg bungled a raid a few years ago at two of Houston’s first private poker clubs. The raid was stained by corruption and conflicts in Ogg’s own office.
“Since then Houston cops and Sheriff’s Deputies have stayed away while the clubs handle millions of dollars in cash unchecked. With hidden cameras, we are about to show you how some of the newer clubs are taking full advantage of the freedom they’ve been given. And it may ruin the fun for everyone else.”
Part of the video focuses on Legends’ owner David La, who was previously involved in a money-laundering scandal, but many believe that Wayne Dolcefino’s own connections to a rival Houston poker room render the accusations biased.
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