An armed pizza deliveryman told Des Moines police that he shot a man who tried to rob him at gunpoint Thursday night outside a south-side apartment building.
When officers arrived at the Sutton Hill Apartments, 2100 S.E. King Ave., the pizza man, James William Spiers, 38, had both handguns, and the wounded robber had fled empty-handed.
The suspect, Kenneth Jimmerson, 19, was arrested when he later called for medical help. Jimmerson was hospitalized Friday with multiple gunshot wounds and faces a charge of first-degree robbery.
Melanie Stout, 18, who allegedly placed the pizza order, was arrested for conspiracy.
Spiers, who has a valid permit to carry a concealed weapon, escaped injury, although his bosses at Pizza Hut suspended him Friday until police sort out the details of the Thursday-night incident.
"We have policy against carrying weapons," said Vonnie Walbert, vice president of human resources at Pizza Hut's corporate offices in Dallas. "We prohibit employees from carrying guns because we believe that that is the safest for everybody."
Spiers, who drives for the Pizza Hut at 4100 S.E. 14th St., told police that when he arrived at the entrance of the building shortly after 10 p.m. Thursday, a man put a pistol to his head and demanded cash. Spiers said he grabbed the gun, simultaneously pulling his own weapon and opening fire. When the robber ran away, Spiers called police.
Officers found Spiers in the parking lot shortly after 10:30 p.m. They said Spiers immediately raised his hands and knelt to the ground. A police report said Spiers told officers "that he had a gun in each of his front coat pockets."
Investigators said Jimmerson later called dispatchers from a second-floor apartment in another building and said he had been shot. He was taken to Mercy Medical Center in serious condition. Police said he was hit by at least three bullets, one of which struck him in the side. Police said Jimmerson will be taken to the Polk County Jail when he is released from the hospital.
Jimmerson's criminal record includes arrests for carrying a concealed weapon and criminal mischief in 2007, harassment in 2006, and assault in 2004.
Stout, who told jail officials her address is 2150 S.E. King Ave., was charged with conspiracy to commit robbery. Her bond was set at $10,000. A representative for Hubbell Apartments, which manages the Sutton Hill complex, said neither Jimmerson nor Stout is listed as a tenant.
Dennis Howe, who has delivered for Domino's Pizza the past three years, said Thursday's incident was a twist on the all-too-typical story. Police do not keep statistics, but a review of newspaper articles from the past few years shows numerous similar holdups in Des Moines, a few that resulted in injury to the driver.
"I hate the thought of what happened, but pizza delivery people are easy targets," Howe said. "This was a bizarre turn of events."
Howe's co-worker Kimberly Babis said Spiers should not have been armed on the job, no matter what the safety concern. She said most drivers have the right to refuse a delivery if they feel it could pose danger.
"I don't understand why the pizza delivery guy had a gun," she said. "And even if the other guy was trying to rob him, it's a measly 20 bucks. At least that's how much our drivers have on them."
