Incidents of aggression toward utility workers in Houston have escalated recently, with the latest involving 38-year-old Anthony Aloric Leonard, who is now facing an aggravated assault with a deadly weapon charge. According to ABC13, on the morning of Saturday, police responded to a report of Leonard allegedly threatening an electric utility worker with a gun at around 8:40 a.m., this event transpired in the 1900 block of Wilcrest Drive; Leonard reportedly fled the scene on foot, however, the Houston Police Department managed to apprehend him shortly after the incident.
This is yet another instance of violence against those working to restore power in the wake of Hurricane Beryl, with a previous event occurring earlier in the week when a man was detained for firing an airsoft gun at a CenterPoint Energy worker—the individual, whose name was not disclosed, was charged with terroristic threat and deadly conduct as reported by FOX26 Houston.
In light of these events CenterPoint Energy made a point to issue a statement about the rise in violent acts against their staff stating, "Unfortunately, we have seen increasing incidents of violence against our crews, at substations, and with our mobile generation crews. We continue to reach out to government official and law enforcement for their help – and they are helping – and we ask all our communities and their leaders to help keep safe the men and women who are away from their own families so they can turn the lights and AC on for everyone else’s." The immediate aftermath of the event on Saturday saw over 100 line workers being evacuated from the affected area as a precaution, this detail was provided by CenterPoint Energy CEO Jason Wells.
