Man Accused Of Robbery At Hammer-point Busted While Hiding In Bathroom Stall

A Rosenberg police officer arrested a Wallis man hiding in a toilet stall on New Year’s Day following a robbery at a Lowe’s store.

Michael Zavala, 33, was charged with aggravated robbery and taken to the Rosenberg city jail. A spokeswoman for the Rosenberg Police Department said he’ll later be transported to Fort Bend County Jail in Richmond.

Witnesses told police Zavala had entered the Lowe’s store at 28005 U.S. 59 in Rosenberg, and started walking out with a “heat bond seaming iron,” then “threatened the store’s employees with a hammer when questioned about the item,” the spokeswoman said.

“Zavala was then seen running across the parking lot at Highway 59 and into a fast food restaurant, where he hid in a bathroom stall,” the police department said in a statement. “Zavala was found in that stall by Officer J. Becerra and taken back to Lowe’s where he was identified by witnesses.”

The police spokeswoman said Zavala was charged with aggravated robbery because he used “a blunt object as a weapon” during the incident.