A Clarke County jury this week convicted a man for an armed robbery last year of an Athens fast food restaurant in which the manager was pistol-whipped and forced into a freezer.
Of three codefendants, two of whom avoided trial by striking plea bargains, 23-year old Ryan Jerrell Faust received the harshest sentence — 17 years in prison and 23 years on probation.
Jurors in the week-long trial apparently believed the prosecution’s contention that Faust was the one who struck the Popeyes manager in the head with a pistol and more or less directed his accomplices in the robbery. Faust was also said to have cocked the trigger of a pistol when pointing it at people who arrived at Popeyes to pick up the night-shift manager.
The jury returned its verdict on Monday, finding Faust guilty on multiple counts of armed robbery, aggravated assault and illegal firearms possession, and single counts of conspiracy, kidnapping and false imprisonment.
“Mr. Faust was the individual that struck the manager with a gun as well as the person who seemed to be directing most of the actions during the armed robbery,” said Assistant District Attorney Kalki Yalamanchili. “The jury’s verdict sent a clear message that this type of behavior is unacceptable in our community and will hopefully provide a degree of closure to the victims of this crime.”
Last month a man who was working at the Prince Avenue Popeyes at the time of the robbery pleaded guilty to charges stemming from role in the heist. Christopher Andrew Brown, 29, unlocked the back door for his accomplices after the restaurant closed for business the night of July 10, 2014. In accordance with a plea agreement reached with prosecutors, Brown received a 30-year sentence, the first 10 years of which to be served in confinement. In striking the deal, Brown avoided a possible life prison sentence, which the DA’s office indicated would be sought if the case went to trial. The sentence was to be sought because Brown was a recidivist with a previous felony conviction, according to a prosecution notice filed in Clarke County Superior Court.
The third accomplice, 21-year-old Gerald Kendrick Baughns, pleaded guilty on July as part of a negotiated agreement. He received a sentence of 25 years, with 10 years to served in confinement.
The armed robbery was investigated by the Athens-Clarke County Police Department.
After reviewing surveillance video, detectives saw that on the night of the robbery, Popeyes doors were locked at about 9:45 p.m., and about a half-hour later, Brown went to the back door to let in Faust and Baughns. With Faust armed with a handgun, he and Baughns went directly to a restroom, where they waited for employees, including Brown, to leave. They then allegedly robbed the manager as he was counting receipts in the office.
One of the robbers took the manager’s cellphone and smashed it on the ground, police said, and the manager was struck in the head with a handgun and forced into the freezer.
As Baughns and Faust ran for the exit, police said, a bag of change broke and they spent several minutes picking up the spilled coins. When they got outside, Baughns and Faust encountered a man and woman in a car who were there to pick up the manager, police said. They reportedly ordered the driver to shut off the car’s engine and give them the keys.
Police said the woman in the car told them that one of the robbers urged the other to “shoot them,” and the robber with the gun cocked the weapon’s hammer but didn’t fire. The men reportedly then hopped a fence, got into an SUV parked at a neighboring business and drove off.
After viewing surveillance video that helped identify Brown as an accomplice, police said they took him into custody and he subsequently identified his two accomplices.
“Law enforcement officers did an outstanding job of quickly identifying the people responsible for this crime,” Yalamanchili said.
Follow Criminal Justice reporter Joe Johnson at www.facebook.com/JoeJohnsonABH or www.twitter.com/JoeJohnsonABH.