Christmas Robbery & Murder in Liberty
LIBERTY, December 26, 2009 - The Peace of Christmas in Liberty was broken late on Christmas night by the discovery of the body of the owner of the Happy Chap Convenience Store also known as Ridgewood Grocery on North Main Street.
Apparently a couple making a late night purchase went into the store and did not see anyone. They walked around the end of the counter where they found the owner, working as the clerk on Christmas, lying on the floor in a pool of blood behind the counter. The owner had suffered a gunshot wound to the head.
Officer Frank Longoria with the City of Liberty Police Department responded to the call and was first to arrive on the scene. He called for an ambulance and the City of Liberty EMS responded to the scene and placed Life Flight in the air. However, despite the best efforts of those involved, it was too late and the man expired at the scene.
Business at the store was light on Christmas night as there was little traffic on the streets at that time and most had settled into a cold winter’s night. The outside temperature at the time was only 33 degrees. The first call came into the Police Department dispatchers at 10:09 PM.
Officers set up a larger perimeter surrounding the crime scene and called for detectives to investigate and determine just what had happened. Detective Elaine Taylor of the City of Liberty Police Department arrived to investigate the incident.
The Major Incident Response Team (MIRT) along with Dayton PD Investigators and the Baytown Crime Scene Unit arrived to assist in the investigation.
Justice of the Peace Bobby Rader arrived on the scene to conduct the inquest and ordered an autopsy be performed at the Jefferson County Medical Examiners Office in Beaumont.
The cash drawer from the register was lying on the floor and the investigation is proceeding under the assumption that robbery was the motive for this homicide, according to Detective Elaine Taylor.
The storeowner was identified as Naushad Virani age 50 of Liberty. Mr. Virani was alive when paramedics arrived but they could not save him. He was married with children.
