Police arrest Donavin Copeland, one of ‘most dangerous and violent’ robbery suspects

Donavin Copeland, the man police suspect as the perpetrator of four violent robberies in Fort Worth and Saginaw, was arrested on Saturday night.

Police in Fort Worth said Copeland was arrested on multiple aggravated robbery warrants at an apartment near the 6200 block of Vega Drive in southwest Fort Worth.

Fort Worth police with the intel, fugitive and SWAT units set up surveillance on the location and arrested him and his brother, 21-year-old Billy Don Copeland. Billy Copeland was in possession of a handgun that Donavin Copeland had stolen during one of the robberies, according to police.

Police said the two men arrived in a car together at the apartment. When the two were leaving the complex, police approached and arrested both men, according to police. During a search of the apartment, police also found a rifle.

Donavin Copeland is facing charges of aggravated robbery, but other charges from various jurisdictions may be filed later. Billy Copeland is charged with unlawful possession of a firearm and harboring a fugitive.

Police said more charges may be filed as the investigation continues.

Detective Brian Raynsford, who has been investigating robberies for 12 years with the Fort Worth Police Department, said he hasn’t seen anyone like this suspect before.

“He is one of the most dangerous and violent individuals I’ve seen,” Raynsford said.

Copeland is suspected of four aggravated armed robberies from Dec. 7, 2022, to Jan. 11, 2023. In three of the robberies, Copeland is suspected of acting alone. In all three, police said he fired a gun.

The first robbery Fort Worth police said Copeland carried out was Dec. 7. Police said Copeland went into a store at 501 North Saginaw Blvd. in Saginaw and fired a gun at the clerk, missing. He then took cash and stole the clerk’s vehicle, which was recovered the next day in west Fort Worth, according to Raynsford.

On Dec. 27, Raynsford said, Copeland and another man went into a game room at 117 Longhorn Road. There, police said one of the men was armed with a knife and the other with a gun. A witness was pistol-whipped and the robbers took cash and the clerk’s vehicle, which was recovered the next day in west Fort Worth.

Raynsford said Copeland struck again on Jan. 2, when he opened fire at a convenience store at 6001 N. Main St. and killed a small dog before stealing the clerk’s car. The car was again recovered the next day in west Fort Worth.

The store clerk, Jacki Anderson, told KXAS-TV that she had the dog, named Peanut, for 12 years.

“Everybody says I am lucky to have my life, but he pretty much stole it from me right then,” Anderson told the NBC station in a written statement. “My baby girl was my best friend, and that store that I can longer step foot in after practically living there for nine years was my life. All those people I saw every day that I can no longer speak to because I don’t want to relive it.”

The most recent robbery police have attributed to Copeland was Wednesday, when, according to Raynsford, Copeland went into a convenience store at 101 Longhorn Road in Fort Worth and fired shots into the ceiling. The clerk’s car was stolen and recovered Thursday, again in west Fort Worth.

Police said Copeland did not cover his face when committing robberies and did not seem to care if witnesses saw him. All the robberies happened in daylight, between 1 p.m. and 3 p.m. Copeland was identified after police received anonymous tips about who he was based on surveillance images that were published showing his face.

On Thursday, Fort Worth SWAT executed a search warrant on Copeland’s apartment in Saginaw with the help of local police, Raynsford said. In the search, police found multiple firearms and physical evidence they believe connects Copeland to the string of offenses.

Other suspected crimes

Police said that while they are not able to comment on specifics, Copeland had run-ins with police as a minor.

More recently, Copeland was arrested in Denton County on suspicion of unauthorized use of a motor vehicle, unlawfully carrying a weapon and tampering with evidence on Sept. 9, according to Fort Worth police.

On Oct. 30, police said, Copeland was stopped by the Parker County Sheriff’s Office for a traffic violation. Copeland fled on foot and escaped, but sheriff’s deputies searched the car and found a handgun reported stolen in a vehicle burglary in Saginaw along with drugs believed to be fentanyl and marijuana.

Most recently before the robberies started, Raynsford said, Copeland was a motel in White Settlement with a girl when he assaulted her, destroyed some property and stole the girl’s car, which was later discovered in Parker County.

Because of those incidents, Copeland is wanted in Parker County on charges of theft of a firearm and possession of a controlled substance and in White Settlement for assault causing bodily injury, criminal mischief and auto theft.

Police emphasized multiple times that if anybody sees Copeland they should avoid him and immediately call 911 from a safe place.

“I’m most worried that the public will try to detain Mr. Copeland and get hurt,” Raynsford said. “He is extremely dangerous and a clear and present danger to both the public and law enforcement.”