A 35-year-old Acworth man was arrested for an armed robbery that took place on Sunday, September 20.

[The Cobb County Courier has recently implemented a policy of withholding the name of suspects unless and until the person is convicted in a court of law. All suspects are innocent until proven guilty, and the internet has no effective way of removing reports of arrest if the person is exonerated].

A public information release from Officer Chuck McPhilamy of the Marietta Police Department describes the incident as follows (name of suspect redacted by the Courier) :

Sunday September 20^th around noon, a woman drove to a store on Cobb Parkway and parked her car in a large retail parking lot.  Everything seemed normal until a stranger approached her pointing a handgun and threatened to kill her if she did not hand over her purse.  She surrendered her purse and ran away from the armed suspect.  Her quick thinking and swift actions allowed her to get away safely.  She screamed for help, causing the suspect to run away.  Within two minutes of the incident (less than one minute of dispatch), several MPD officers were on scene. 

Responding officers established a perimeter and began assigning individual tasks that would ultimately lead to the capture of thirty-five-year-old [name redacted] of Acworth. 

Canine Apex was deployed on a track while multiple other officers began meeting with neighboring businesses to check their surveillance videos.  Based on the surveillance videos the officers knew [name redacted] had removed some of his clothing and dropped a backpack while fleeing the area.  Photos were quickly sent to all officers on the search and on the path of the track officers were able to locate the purse, backpack and suspect’s clothing.  A local resident who saw the activity spoke with the officers in the area and spread the word to his neighbors.  [name redacted], who had been hiding behind a shed in a neighborhood, attempted to flee the area when an officer on the perimeter stopped him.  [Name redacted] told the officer that he knew he had an outstanding warrant and was taken into custody without incident.  At the time of his arrest he thought he had gotten away with his latest crime.  Little did he know that Marietta is a COMMUNITY that works together!

The loaded handgun was still missing, and officers were still searching for it when another nearby business owner called to report finding one in their parking lot!  Officers were dispatched, collected the weapon and placed it into evidence.

Due to the swift collaborative effort of all involved officers and citizens, this violent criminal was quicky apprehended.  This case serves as a great example of how expeditiously crimes can be solved when the police and community unite, and technology is embraced and utilized!

[Name redacted] was booked into the Cobb County Adult Detention Center (warrant 20-W-7613) and is being held without bond facing charges of Armed Robbery with a weapon (F) and VGCSA Possession Marijuana (M) as well as previous charges from another agency.