Sheriff's deputy foils alleged robbery plot by teens

DECATUR (MCT) — Dale Pope, a Macon County sheriff's deputy, was driving north on Franklin Street at the beginning of his shift Thursday night when he spotted two young males crossing the street, wearing all dark clothing.

The officer decided to pull his patrol car over and have a chat with the teens, both of whom were carrying backpacks and wearing bandanas around their necks, over their black hooded sweatshirts.

As a result of his alert response, a loaded handgun was discovered, and two 18-year-old males were arrested. A 16-year-old male was also taken into custody in connection with the case.

Scyllir Crawford and George Albritton were booked into the Macon County Jail and charged in circuit court with attempted armed robbery, conspiracy to commit armed robbery and unlawful use of weapons.

As Pope engaged them in conversation near the Decatur Civic Center about 11:30 p.m. Thursday, the two teens told him they were heading for a friend's house. They then granted consent for the officer to search them and their backpacks.

When Pope went through the backpack of a 16-year-old male, he found a loaded .22-caliber revolver and a roll of duct tape, according to a sworn statement by a sheriff's detective. A 2-foot-long stick was found in Albritton's backpack.

Both males admitted to the deputy that they had been on their way to commit an armed robbery, according to the statement.

After gaining consent to check their cellphones, Pope discovered text messages that contained details about their alleged robbery plot. The messages, sent from Crawford, who was not on the scene, said: "Wanna do a lick," street slang for committing a robbery, and "if he open it (the door) rush hard bro n beat his ass n duck tape em."

The intended victim resided in the 800 block of Cantrell Heights, about two-thirds of a mile southeast of the civic center, according to court documents.

When Crawford was interviewed by police, he said he was only joking, according to the sworn statement. The 16-year-old was remanded to the custody of juvenile officers.

Sheriff Thomas Schneider commended the actions of Pope, especially for the way he communicated with the suspects and gained their consent and confessions.