Jan 27, 2025
The murder of a CVS security officer in downtown Dallas is renewing residents’ concerns over safety. Residents insist not enough is being done to keep residents and employees safe in the heart of the city. The murder late Friday night of CVS security guard Anthony Egeonu continues to be felt by many who live or work downtown. “He’s been kind of a staple in the community,” said longtime downtown resident Amy Ramsey. “It tears your heart out, he had children he left behind. It’s senseless.” Senseless is also how Jennifer Scripps president of Downtown Dallas Inc. describes the incident. Police say Egeonu was shot while confronting two juveniles who were shoplifting from the store.   “The fact that a hardworking man and supporter of his family was senselessly killed by two youths,” said Scripps. “[The suspects] do not live in downtown, is our understanding. We’re really grateful for DPD for apprehending them both within hours, but it never should have happened.” The shooting is also renewing calls from residents for more action to combat crime and ongoing quality of life concerns. Ramsey is part of a tight-knit community of downtown residents and business owners who often share information on criminal activity on Facebook. When it comes to Monday’s noticeable presence of city police and DDI security guards patrolling Main and Elm Streets, near the scene of Friday’s murder, Ramsey and other residents say it is a temporary show of force. “When something happens, we do get an uptick in presence, which is wonderful because for a while it does provide that sense of safety and security, but then it kind of dwindles away after time and everything goes back to normal,” she said. Ramsey also noted the shooting coincided with a cheerleading competition downtown over the weekend. “It’s not enough. Public safety, it’s not enough,” claims Ramsey. “When I walk down the street in the middle of the day and I’m getting harassed or getting a knife pulled or seeing someone’s personal genitalia it’s no. No. And I’m an adult, I can handle it but when you bring children into the city it’s not.” The latest, Dallas police online records show 30 calls for service to this CVS, in December – mostly for theft and drug offenses. “I know that DOD had also been in partnership with, as has DDI, with that store because shoplifting is a concern like in many places,” said Scripps.    The city contracts DDI to help provide a cleaner, safer downtown.   Scripps says police and DDI will be meeting with downtown residents to discuss the murder and public safety on Tuesday at 6 p.m. inside the Adolphus Hotel. Doors open at 5:30. “We really are continuing to do everything that DDI can do in partnership with all our law enforcement partners,” said Scripps. Ramsey, who plans to run for city council, says statistics don’t seem to line up with what she and others encounter while living and working downtown. She wants to see increased transparency from every agency tasked with downtown safety. “We need to know the stats. We need to know the truth,” she said. “I bought here in 2010, so I’ve been here a while, and I’ve watched the progression of it just continually getting worse.” When asked to respond to concerns of quality of life issues and the belief that increased patrols will soon decrease, Scripps said, “I’m sorry to hear them say that. DPD started increasing their presence at the end of last year, last quarter. DDI has only grown our presence in the past two years… We’ve been very steady, we’ve always been seven days a week full tilt.” NBC 5 reached out to police for any update on the shooting investigation and charges but has not yet heard back. Police previously stated the suspects’ identities would not be released to the public, as is standard, because of their age. ...read more read less
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