Fayetteville police want to locate three men involved in an armed robbery Jan. 29 at the McDonald’s restaurant on Ga. Highway 85 South. The men eluded police after crashing their getaway car and then fleeing on foot.
Fayetteville Police Department spokesman Mike Whitlow said the hold-up occurred at approximately 11:47 p.m. as the restaurant’s two remaining employees locked the door and left the building.
They were approached by two black males, both carrying handguns, Whitlow said. One of the suspects had a bushy beard and was wearing a gray hoodie, black pants and black shoes. The two males carrying the handguns had ski masks partially covering their faces, said Whitlow.
“The employees were initially put on the ground and ordered to unlock the door,” Whitlow said, adding that the employees did not have keys to the door. “One of the suspects shot at the door and forced the employees back into the store and to the safe.”
Whitlow said the suspects, three in total, fled the scene in a blue 2013 Hyundai Sonata after the employees could not open the safe.
A nearby officer chased the vehicle east as it was leaving the Walgreen’s parking lot, situated next to McDonald’s.
After a short pursuit on the Hwy. 92 Connector, the suspects wrecked the vehicle at Helen Sams Parkway and then ran into the woods, Whitlow said.
Units from Fayetteville, the Fayette County Sheriff’s Office and an off-duty Peachtree City police officer began to establish a perimeter, said Whitlow. Sheriff’s K-9 units arrived at the scene, as did a chopper from Spalding County.
Whitlow said the suspects were tracked to the Kingswood subdivision a short distance to the south. Officers believe someone picked up the suspects or they were able to leave the area before the perimeter could be completely established, he said.
Whitlow said an article of clothing was located by the tracking team, adding that investigators obtained search warrant for the vehicle.
The two McDonald’s employees were treated at the scene for minor injuries, said Whitlow. Anyone with information pertaining to this crime is asked to contact the Fayetteville Police Department at 770-461-4441. Bank suspects caught trying to switch getaway car’s license plate In a botched getaway Jan. 25, the Austell couple who robbed the PNC Bank in Fayetteville on Jan. 25 were quickly caught approximately one mile from the bank while attempting to change the license plate on their get-away vehicle.
The bank off Ga. Highway 314 in Fayetteville was robbed during the mid-afternoon hours Jan. 25. The suspects were taken into custody a short time later without incident. William Bradford, 38, of Austell, and Kylana Threat, 20, also from Austell, were each charged with armed robbery, aggravated assault and other charges, according to Fayetteville Police Department spokesman Mike Whitlow.
Whitlow said Bradford at approximately 2:30 p.m. entered the PNC Bank on Beckett Lane. Wearing a ski mask and holding a pistol, Bradford demanded money from the teller. Bradford left the bank and entered a gray Acura driven by Threat, Whitlow said.
Whitlow said witnesses provided a tag number and the vehicle was located by Fayette County sheriff’s deputies in the Brandon Mill subdivision off New Hope Road, approximately one mile from the bank.
Rather then fleeing the area immediately, the pair had pulled into the subdivision and was attempting to change the license plate when deputies arrived and took them into custody, said Whitlow.
Bradford and Threat were taken into custody without incident. Whitlow said bank employees were understandably shaken but no one was injured in the robbery.
Whitlow applauded the cooperation of witnesses and the quick work of police officers and sheriff’s deputies.
The robbery is under investigation with the Federal Bureau of Investigation assisting, Whitlow said.
