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Friends escape during home invasion
Two Austin residents are traumatized after three men kicked down the door to their apartment. Crime Watch reporter Meredith Aldis has the details.
AUSTIN, Texas - Two Austin residents are traumatized after three men kicked down the door to their apartment.
It happened in October in the middle of the night. One suspect has been arrested, but two others are on the loose.
"It's almost like a scene out of a movie," Rokhsan Arfa said.
"There were three guys, two of them with masks, completely masked up," Samuel Vandever said. "I came in, locked the door, and locked the front door and as soon as I turn around, I start hearing kicking."
Vandever walked into his bedroom to wake up his best friend, Arfa.
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VIDEO: 3 men seen breaking into apartment
Two Austin residents are traumatized after three men kicked down the door to their apartment. It happened in October in the middle of the night. One suspect has been arrested, but two others are on the loose.
"I just remember him coming into the door and slamming it and then being like Roxy, open the window, and I remember not being able to open it because I was asleep, shocked, and also it was a little stuck," Arfa said.
Panicking, Vandever said he had to act quickly.
"I just started punching through the window in there and I pulled her out, and we ran," Vandever said.
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The men made their way into the apartment.
"I think they thought that we were someone else, I don't know, because the way they came in wasn't really worth some laptops," Arfa said.
Abraham Rodriguez was arrested and charged with two counts of aggravated robbery, possession of a controlled substance, and unlawful carrying of a weapon. Rodriguez is a felon. At the time of the incident, he was on deferred adjudication.
The other men involved in the crime haven’t been caught yet.
"There are definitely people involved who have not been caught, and who knows, they might just go onto the next person, onto the next thing," Vandever said.
Vandever and Arfa said this has very much impacted them, and they have scars to show for it. Arfa’s foot was fractured during the escape and Vandever’s tendons in his arm were severed.
"It cut to the bone when I punched the window out, and I had to have emergency surgery," Vandever said. "I hope I get a full recovery, but it's not looking like it right now."
They said they’re moving out of the Henry Heights Apartment Complex.
"How are we supposed to stay here and feel good when everything is a constant reminder of what happened," Arfa said.
Vandever said his message to the criminals is: "Why are you willing to kill somebody for whatever you're looking for?"
If you have any information to help in the investigation, call police.