A Fannin County couple was jailed in Gilmer County Monday, January 9, and held without bond after being arrested for trying to rob a convenience store just off Highway 515.
Shawn Douglas Sutton and Melody Anne Sutton, both 39 of 756 Damascus Circle, Blue Ridge, face charges in the attempted robbery of the Ideal Mart, according to a statement from Ellijay Police Chief Edward Lacey.
The store is located at 31 Old Northcutt Road in Ellijay, just north of Appalachian Supply on Highway 515.
Lacey’s statement said Gilmer County 911 received a call at approximately 6:30 p.m. reporting a robbery in progress.
Shawn Sutton is accused of entering the store and posing as a customer buying an energy drink. Melody Sutton waited outside in a parked car at the side of the store.
Two customers were inside and a third was at the gas pumps.
After getting the drink, Sutton pulled a pair of women’s panties from around his neck to cover his face. He went behind the counter, pointed a .45 caliber pistol at the clerk’s head and demanded all the money.
One of the two customers, who was legally carrying a concealed pistol, produced his firearm and intervened. The second customer went to his vehicle, obtained his pistol, and returned to help.
Sutton was trying to leave when the customer who had been at the gas pumps, also armed, came to assist, Lacey’s statement said.
The first customer, seeing Sutton had been disarmed, told the others not to shoot the suspect.
At this time, law enforcement arrived and an officer confronted Sutton who was still trying to leave.
The officer ordered him to stop and get down. When Sutton failed to comply, the officer used a Taser to bring him under control.
Other officers discovered Melody Sutton in the waiting car and took her into custody.
Both arrests were made by Ellijay police officers, according to booking reports. Officers from East Ellijay and the Gilmer County Sheriff’s Office also assisted at the scene.
Lacey’s statement said Shawn Sutton is charged with one count of Armed Robbery, one count of Aggravated Assault, and one count of Possession of a Firearm by a Convicted Felon.
Melody Sutton’s Arrest/Booking Report shows she is also charged with Armed Robbery.
The two suspects were booked less than an hour after officers arrived on the scene at the Ideal Mart.