‘Burglary crew’ on dizzying ‘crime spree’ pulled off 58 break-ins, Macon DA says
A four-month wave of 58 burglaries at popular restaurants, dollar stores and gas marts across Macon was part of a money-making criminal enterprise that targeted businesses in the “dead of night” and netted the culprits “thousands and thousands” of dollars, Bibb County’s district attorney said Wednesday.
In announcing formal racketeering charges against four men and a woman, District Attorney David Cooke said those accused were part of a theft ring that began late last year.
The case includes break-ins in and around some of the city’s most-frequented commercial hubs: Pio Nono Avenue, Vineville Avenue, Riverside Drive and Eisenhower Parkway.
Cooke said the alleged scheme was, in essence, a business unto itself.
“The business was ... a burglary crew,” Cooke said, “a crew of burglars who worked together.”
In all, 49 establishments were hit, some multiple times.
A Dollar General store on Pierce Avenue was burglarized on four occasions, according to investigators, during the string of break-ins that stretched from Dec. 23 of last year through April of 2020.
The Fountain Car Wash on Hardeman Avenue at Interstate 75 was burglarized three times, while a Taco Bell on Gray Highway was broken into twice.
Other break-ins happened at Family Dollar stores, Jim Shaw’s Seafood Grill, KFC, Fresh Air Barbecue and Domino’s pizza.
The series of burglaries also included break-ins at O’Reilly Auto Parts, AutoZone, Papa John’s, Subway, Big Lots, Fanboy Collectibles & Comics, Harbor Freight and Vineville Beverage & Cigar.
Bibb grand jurors on Tuesday indicted five alleged participants in the scheme — all from Macon — on charges that include burglary and theft by receiving stolen property.
Frankie Lee Barnes, 51; Cornelius Antonio Redding, 32; Marcus Deshawn Robinson, 40; Antuane McQuell Simmons, 33; and Margo Shada Watts, 31, have been charged with violating the state’s Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act.
The four men have also been charged with numerous counts of second-degree burglary.
“What started out as a few pre-Christmas and Christmas burglaries turned into a countywide crime spree,” Cooke said.
It wasn’t clear how the suspects were caught, though Cooke cited “great police work.”
Three of the accused were jailed April 28 after it was learned they had, according to the indictment, received stolen property from a grocery store on Rocky Creek Road.
The property was said to include, as the indictment phrased it, “a slow cooker and electronics.”
This story was originally published December 16, 2020 at 2:37 PM.