Lufkin Robbery Victim Requests Public Release of Surveillance Video

Saturday afternoon, Lufkin Police arrested Andrea Franks-Vanzandt, 21, of Lufkin, on a charge of aggravated robbery.  He walked into Lucky's Convenience Store around 12:40 p.m., waited in line for a moment in front of the register, and then assaulted and robbed a man of $35 inside the store.  

The victim, Richard Lee Archer, 39, of Angelina County, waited in line behind Franks-Vanzandt for a moment, digging into his wallet for cash before the robbery occurred.

Franks-Vanzandt punched, kicked and stomped Archer repeatedly until the Archer went unconscious. No words were exchanged between the men prior to the attack and they did not know each other.

Archer was flown to an out-of-town hospital with serious injuries to his head/face and eyes, but as of noon Sunday, was expected to recover.

At the victim's request, surveillance video of the aggravated robbery is being released. Archer, 39, left is badly bruised, but thankful to be alive. He said he hopes people will be more aware of their surroundings after seeing what happened to him in a life-changing instant Saturday afternoon.

WARNING - EXTREMELY DISTURBING VIDEO

His wife was waiting for him in their vehicle as he walked inside to pay for gas before heading out of town to see a Houston Astros game around 12:40 p.m. Saturday. He said that when Andrea Franks-Vanzandt, 21, grabbed the $35 he had just pulled from his wallet, he looked up expecting to see a friend playing a joke on him.

Instead he was met with a barrage of punches, kicks and stomps that left him lying on the floor, in and out of consciousness.

"My wife will disagree, but I'm glad it was me," he said. "If it hadn't, I think something really bad was about to happen to those store clerks."

Archer was flown to Memorial Hermann in Houston. He was released earlier this week.

Franks-Vanzandt fled the store on foot to Pioneer Crossing Apartment Complex and was arrested less than 10 minutes later.

Franks-Vanzandt remains in the Angelina County Jail on a $40,000 bond, charged with aggravated robbery.