Wednesday, July 20, 2005 | ||
Bad Links? | Bond denied for theater suspectsBy LEE WILLIAMS Griffin Judicial Circuit Superior Court Judge Chris Edwards denied bond requests Friday for two men accused of robbing the Tinseltown Movie Theater in Fayetteville at gunpoint June 14. Attorneys for the two suspects Aundrea Lee, 28, of Powder Springs, and Darrel Brown, 45, of Douglasville, petitioned the Superior Court for bond. Brown and Lee face charges of four counts of armed robbery, two counts of false imprisonment, one count of kidnapping and one count of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. The charges the men face stem from the armed robbery that forced the closure of the movie theater for two days and put a dent in the theaters profits. The incident unfolded after one of the employees at Tinseltown tripped the panic alarm and alerted authorities. The robbers had reportedly tied up two managers at gunpoint and seized over $1,100 cash from the 72,000 square-foot facility. But before the men could bolt with the cash, another employee tripped the alarm. Theater general manager Dair Bradley, assistant manager Caitlin Williams, employee Alton Brown and assistant manager Lynette Montgomery, were inside of the theater when the bandits allegedly struck. The incident kicked off a standoff with over 100 area law enforcement officials. Lee was immediately caught by police. Police captured Brown 24 hours later. Edwards considered the request, but decided not to grant bond to Lee and Brown, fearing the men were flight risks. Brown and Lee reportedly have a criminal past. Browns criminal past, which includes an armed robbery conviction out of Louisiana could work against him, thanks to the Two-strikes-and-youre-out law in Georgia, officials say. If convicted, Brown could face life in prison without the possibility of parole, officials say. Now that the bond hearings are over, Judge Edwards is moving forward with the trials. The cases are scheduled for arraignment at 9 a.m. this Thursday at the Fayette County Courthouse. The trials for the two men also have been scheduled at 9 a.m. for the weeks of Sept. 19 and Sept. 26, officials said. |
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