Friday, Sept. 23, 2005 | ||
Bad Links? | Police nab robbery suspectBy BEN NELMS A quick response by Palmetto police and neighboring agencies led to the apprehension of the gunman that held up the Advanced Auto Parts Sept. 16 and the driver behind the wheel of the getaway car. Charged with armed robbery, false imprisonment and theft by receiving a stolen automobile (in a separate incident) was Anthony McGowen, 39, of a Derrick Road address in unincorporated Fulton County and 18-year-old Newnan resident Jonathan Bailey, charged with being a party to the crime of armed robbery, according to Palmetto Det. John Cooper. McGowen was out on parole for another offense, he said. The events of the armed robbery began at approximately 11:15 a.m. when a lone gunman entered the Advanced Auto Parts store at Roosevelt Highway and Cascade Palmetto Road. Cooper said the man bound the female employee using a plastic cable tie and demanded at gunpoint that the manager open the safe. Once the safe was opened, the manager was bound in the same manner while the man took an undisclosed amount of cash, according to Cooper. The store employees were instructed to lie on the floor and count to 10 once the man fled, Cooper said. As McGowen left the business the manager retrieved a knife from his pocket, freed himself and the other employee and called 911. Cooper said the manager ran into the parking lot and toward the Chevron station in an attempt to locate the robber. With the assistance of a nearby witness the manager was able to get the license tag of a black Infiniti that McGowen had entered, according to Cooper. The vehicle was seen traveling south on Roosevelt Highway, he added. Cooper and Officer Alan Robinson processed the scene while Chief Bobby Fronebarger and Assistant Chief Fred Waddell proceeded to Tyrone, where the car was registered. Speaking with the owner, Fronebarger and Waddell were told he had loaned the car to McGowen approximately one month earlier. During the investigation, police received information that McGowen might be headed to a detail shop in Union City. Palmetto and Union City officers waited in the area, and, at approximately 2 p.m., McGowen arrived at the location. While questioning him, McGowen broke away and ran but was immediately apprehended by officers, Cooper said. McGowen was later identified by the Advanced Auto Parts manager in a photo lineup, Cooper added. At approximately 4 p.m., Union City Det. Ken Hester and Tyrone Det. Dean Johnson spotted the black Infiniti near South Fulton Parkway. They stopped the vehicle on Derrick Road north of Union City. Officers found Bailey and a female in the Infiniti. Cooper responded to interview the vehicles two occupants and process the scene. Upon questioning, Cooper said Bailey confessed to his part in the armed robbery earlier that day. The vehicles female occupant, said Cooper, was questioned and released. McGowen and Bailey were later interviewed by officers in Union City. Search warrants were obtained for the vehicle and the Derrick Road residence where McGowen lived, Cooper said. The search warrant was executed by officers from Fulton County Police, Palmetto and Union City. The money stolen during the armed robbery and a 9-mm automatic pistol were found during the search, said Cooper. Multiple agencies responding the way they did really helped get this case resolved, Cooper said Monday, commenting that only a few hours had elapsed from the time of the armed robbery to the arrest of the suspects. With three or four agencies involved you can really get things done. Mirroring Coopers comments, Fronebarger said the assistance of law enforcement from Union City, Tyrone, Fairburn and Fulton County proved invaluable in the rapid manner in which the crime was solved and arrests made. I would like to commend the other agencies that assisted us in this incident, especially Union City Asst. Chief Chuck Odem and his staff for their excellent assistance in this matter, Fronebarger said. The suspects were in custody within hours due to the perseverance and professionalism demonstrated in this situation. The teamwork by all agencies was phenomenal.
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