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SPRINGVILLE — A man suspected in the robbery of a Springville convenience store ended up in the emergency room after he smashed his own head into the window of a police car, officers said.
It began just before midnight on Thursday, when 20-year-old Kamden Lee walked up to a clerk outside the Maverick convenience store at 309 N. Main St. and held a handgun to his head, demanding money and cigarettes, according to Springville police Lt. Dave Caron.
Kamden loaded up on cash and cigarettes and then forced the clerk into a bathroom at the back of the store before taking off, Caron said.
Officers arrived at the scene shortly after and launched a search for Lee, who was described as wearing a gray hoodie with a blue bandana covering his face and fingerless gloves, police said. Officers caught up with Lee just a few blocks from the Maverick, when his pants got caught on a fence he was trying to jump.
“He was dangling there from the fence and couldn’t get out of his pants and couldn’t get untangled from the fence so it made it relatively easy for the officers to catch him,” Caron said.
Lee told police he’d thrown his gun away, but officers found it in his pocket as they were arresting him. They were also able to recover Lee’s cellphone from a nearby yard as well as the stolen cash and cigarettes, Caron said.
“He was dangling there from the fence and couldn’t get out of his pants and couldn’t get untangled from the fence so it made it relatively easy for the officers to catch him." -Springville police Lt. Dave Caron
Tracking Lee down proved to be the simplest part of the ordeal. Once officers had him in the police car, he turned violent, Caron said.
“He got into the car and started beating his head against the window and the partition between the front seat and the backseat and gave himself a gash in the forehead,” said Caron.
In addition to the head banging, Lee managed to kick out the rear window of the police car, according to Caron. Officers had him transported to the emergency room in an ambulance, where he was strapped to a gurney to prevent him from hurting himself further.
Lee was treated for his cut and taken back to the Utah County Jail, where he began spitting at and assaulting officers.
“During the whole thing he head-butted at least one deputy, he spit and kicked and carried on,” said Caron. “He’s facing a pretty long list of charges at this point.”
Lee was heavily intoxicated at the time of his arrest, Caron said. Charges against him include aggravated robbery, aggravated assault, aggravated kidnapping and a variety of others.
