Beaumont native, James Eller, spends a lot of time trying to catch shoplifters in his spare time.
"I stop a lot of thieves from stealing in stores," he said.
Recently, he was was going home late one night when a someone in a truck started following him.
He said he made several turns and the truck was right behind him.
As a Facebook admin on a crime watch page, he couldn't help but think they could have been trying to rob him.
"There's been multiple occasions where people have said that people have been following us from ATMs," Eller said.
Beaumont police said this happens quite often. The term for it is jugging.
Suspects sit outside of banks or ATMs and wait for potential victims they can follow and ultimately rob. Police say it's not an outrageous problem, but it happens enough for them to warn the community.
"Always be aware of your surroundings first and foremost, most people, normal people as they are leaving, running their errands, leaving the bank, they aren't thinking, 'I wonder if someone is watching me', and unfortunately we live in a time where you have to be proactive," Officer Haley Morrow said.
As a licensed gun carrier, Eller said he always stays prepared, but criminals should beware.
"It's going to take someone actually shooting these individuals and putting them down before they get the point that there's consequences," Eller said. "There's things that are going to happen. There's repercussions to everything you do."
If someone starts following you, police do not recommend taking matters into your own hands. Anyone with information about crimes like this can call Beaumont Police at (409) 832-1234.
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