Did slain "American Sniper" fatally shoot two armed robbers in 2009?

UPDATE: Interestingly, Michael J. Mooney at D Magazine said Friday that the story was "confirmed" by Chris Kyle himself, although there is still no hard evidence. And, let's be honest, the contention that police and "someone high in the government" colluded to cover up two killings is kind of hard to believe.

We spoke with Luttrell's wife, Melanie, on Thursday night. She said her husband would issue a statement about the passage today. We'll pass that along if we get it.

---------------------

ORIGINAL POST: Less than a week after his death, the legend of Chris Kyle continues to grow.

But trying to nail down stories about Kyle, the most lethal sniper in U.S. history, can be tricky.

Kyle, author of the best-selling book American Sniper, and friend Chad Littlefield were shot and killed at a resort’s gun range Saturday in Glen Rose, southwest of Fort Worth. 

Eddie Ray Routh, 25, is accused in the shooting and remained in the Erath County Jail in Stephenville on $3 million bond.

The shootings quickly became a national story and continue to generate interest; in fact, Kyle’s memorial service is scheduled to be held at Cowboys Stadium in Arlington.

Earlier this week, a caller told the Star-Telegram that there is a great story circulating about Kyle killing two armed robbers at a gas station in Cleburne in 2009.

The caller didn’t provide a lot of details, but we got curious and began searching for information.

What we discovered is that an account of the incident was written by best-selling author Marcus Luttrell in his most recent book, Service: A Navy SEAL at War.

Here’s an excerpt from pages 282-283:

On a bitterly cold morning in early January of 2009, the war, in a sense, found Chris again. What happened to him not far from his home outside Dallas never made the news, since the town involved didn’t want the publicity, but the incident certainly would have made national headlines had a reporter ever gotten a tip about it.

Chris was minding his own business, fueling his pickup truck at a gas station, when he found himself at gunpoint. Two men holding pistols demanded his truck. Law enforcement will usually advise you to give in to the criminal in a situation like this. And that’s good advice. But Chris took another route. Very calmly and coolly, he sized up which of the men was handling his pistol more comfortably. He put his hands up and told them he was going to reach into the truck to get his keys. Then his hand went under his coat.

From a waistband holster, he pulled his Colt 1911. Swinging the pistol under his left armpit, he gave each robber two .45 caliber Hydra-Shock hollow-points to the chest. By the time the cops responded to the 911 call from the terrified lady who had locked herself in a car behind Chris’s truck, the matter was settled. Elapsed time: about ten seconds. The service station’s security cameras caught the whole thing.

I pray for anyone whose life gets so desperate that he or she chooses to resort to a life of crime, but it’s hard to resist a little cold laughter all the same: I mean, how unlucky a dumbass do you have to be to target a random guy for felony armed assault and find out he’s killed more people than smallpox?

Truly an interesting tale, but is it true?

We searched for news stories and found none. We checked with the medical examiner’s office, which reported no such deaths in Cleburne in January 2009.

We sought an interview with Luttrell, himself a decorated Navy SEAL, but did not hear back.

We sent emails to friends of Kyle.

One, who asked to remain anonymous, replied that if Luttrell said it, then “it’s probably true.” He also confirmed that the alleged incident happened in Cleburne.

We asked Cleburne police about it and, after a day of research, they said they had no record of such a shooting. Ditto for the Johnson County district attorney’s office.

Police in Midlothian, where Kyle lived, had no knowledge of “such an event.”

Another friend of Kyle’s, Dalworthington Gardens Police Chief Bill Waybourn, replied:

“The legends about Chris abound. After this week I expect a thousand stories like that.”

But he declined to comment on whether the incident described by Luttrell actually happened.

- Lee Williams, editor

INFORMATION ON CHRIS KYLE'S MEMORIAL SERVICE AT COWBOYS STADIUM:

• Begins at 1 p.m. Monday; doors will open at 11:30 a.m.
• Parking is free. Use Lots 1, 2, & 10, which are nearest to Randol Mill and N. Collins.
• Enter through Gates A & K on the north side of the stadium.
• Attendees are encouraged to arrive early.
• No cameras, bags, purses or substantial handheld items will be allowed in the stadium. In honor of the reverence this memorial service deserves, Chris Kyle’s family has asked that the general public not take photographs or record video during the ceremony. No cameras will be allowed inside.

-- Source: Arlington Police Department

Comments

[Me]

No cameras allowed inside?? HOLY CRAP! What is the MEDIA going to DOOOOOO!!!!

[Jake Trotter]

What happened to the Luttrell statement you were working on? Seems like you guys had the story and decided not to go with it yet. But if Kyle had told one of your reporters that himself it would have been online in 2 seconds.

[B. L. Zebubba]

This nailing-a-pair-of-armed-robbers story sounds like bullsh to me. "If Luttrell said it then it's probably true" - what a clownish remark.

[Kathy Vetter]

@Jake Trotter, as we said, if and when we receive a statement from Marcus Luttrell, we will post it on the blog. Eds

[NadePaulKuciGravMcKi]

More Braggart trash-talk ... just like his attempted hit-man SMEAR of Jesse Ventura

[Espada Guy]

How many gas stations with cameras could there be in that area? Even a "cooperative" police department would have arrived with some urgency and stayed for quite a while to square away the scene. There must have been local witnesses that stumbled upon this intending to get some gas. Can't these people be located to confirm/deny any commotion at the time in question?

[Steve]

@Kathy Vetter

February 15, 2013
Sniper shooting in Cleburne a hoax
http://www.cleburnetimesreview.com/local/x766089047/Sniper-shooting-in-Cleburne-a-hoax

[kyle nohero]

kyle is the hoax. just more fodder to sell his book. chalk up that lie with the one about jessie ventura being punched along with all the other stories told to sell a book.

[Bryan]

This story was confirmed from the horse's mouth. He told his old shooting partners this story before he was killed, they have confirmed it with me.