Deputies Arrest Man Accused of Attacking Real Estate Agent

A man was caught and arrested in Granbury, TX after using the Credit Card of a Realtor he allegedly accosted in Missouri. He was captured by police at a home he was viewing with a Keller Williams Real estate agent.

Deputies said Mathew Wilson, 48, was looking at pricey homes with another real estate agent near Granbury when he was arrested." Although it may seem out of the ordinary for crimes to be committed against real estate agents, it is far more common than one might think. This man is accused of accosting, binding, robbing and sexually assaulting a real estate agent in Missouri and was found to have knives, duct tape, handcuffs, a BB gun and a pile of realtor business cards in the trunk of his car. Just over a year ago, a realtor working an open house in a new home was brutally and repeatedly stabbed dying at the home and not being found until several hours later. As the owner of a real estate company, it is imperative that I do everything I can to keep our real estate agents safe. In our office we hold self defense classes taught by a black belt and certified self defense instructor. We also instruct agents to meet with their clients at the office if they do not know the client and to ask for their driver's license. This may seem somewhat invasive to a client who is an upstanding citizen, but applying this policy to all individuals regardless of what they look like or act like is the best course of action for agents who routinely show unoccupied homes to people that they may have only just met. Most serial rapists and murders don't have a neon sign plastered across their foreheads indicating their propensity for assaulting others. Many times they look much like your next door neighbor. Our office also has a policy that allows for agents to ask for a staff member or another agent to go with them as "an assistant" if they feel uncomfortable. Agents can leave a list of the homes that they will tour and have the right to request that they drive independent of the client. Agents may also call and request that the office call and check on them throughout the course of their showings. Agents, as independent contractors, show hundreds of homes each year to potential clients and the odds of having a problem with someone are pretty low. However, stories like the one listed show that in this day and age, we must all be careful and take precautions against those who choose to be predators. So, if you decide that it is time for you to buy a new home and you start working with a real estate agent, don't be surprised or offended if the agent asks you for your ID and the make and model of your car. It isn't that they don't trust you as an individual, they are just taking the necessary steps in general to keep themselves safe. They to want to be able to support their family and return home safe and sound after a long days work.