A man released from prison just 1½ months ago is back in custody, now accused of robbing the local wellness center and temporarily abducting a clerk.
The Eupora Police Department stated the incident occurred around 7:50 p.m. Friday at the NMMC-Eupora Wellness Center, 111 E. Walnut Ave. The EPD and Police Chief Gregg Hunter provided this account of the crimes:
A man wearing a dark-colored hood with a blue rag covering part of his face entered the center and demanded money from the female clerk, who was alone. Armed with a screwdriver, the man took around $40 cash from her.
The robber then demanded she take him to the Regions Bank branch just down the street in the clerk’s vehicle and withdraw cash from the ATM. Once the man got about $200 from the clerk, he exited the vehicle at around 8 p.m. and fled on foot from the branch bank.
The clerk, who was unharmed, then drove to the sheriff’s office, which then reported the incident to the police department.
The EPD was able to obtain video surveillance footage from the bank. Still images of the suspect were posted on the department’s Facebook page and aired on TV news reports in efforts to identify him.
In an update Saturday, the department posted it was searching for Dontarious Davis in connection with the robbery and that he was last seen in the Eupora area that day. Another update later that day said Davis was in custody by EPD.
Hunter booked Davis, 22, of 540 N. Sapa Road, into the county jail at 8:30 p.m. Saturday on charges of armed robbery and kidnapping. He was arraigned in Eupora Municipal Court on Monday before Justice Court Judge Rebecca Ellison because Municipal Judge Buchanan Meek Jr. was out of town. Ellison set an initial hearing for 3 p.m. April 14.
‘Group effort’
Although his total bond was set at $130,000, Davis is on probation with the Mississippi Department of Corrections because of a previous felony conviction. As a result, he is not eligible to make bond because of an MDOC hold and remains in custody. Hunter said MDOC is in the process of serving Davis with a warrant.
“We anticipate he’ll be sent (back) to prison,” the police chief said.
He thanked the off-duty police officers who came in to assist with the investigation, along with Administrative Assistant/Court Clerk Milinda Norwood. He also thanked the community for its support as well.
“It was a group effort,” he said.
Addressing the Eupora Board of Aldermen about the incident Monday night, Hunter confirmed that the bank’s surveillance footage helped lead to Davis’ arrest.
“We got him apprehended in the city within 24 hours,” Hunter said.
Previous Conviction
Davis, aka “Man Man,” pleaded guilty Dec. 20, 2016, to burglary of an occupied dwelling. Webster County Circuit Court records show he received a 15-year prison sentence. However, seven years were suspended and he was ordered to serve eight years followed by seven years of supervised probation.
As part of the plea deal, a second indictment charging Davis with another burglary was dismissed upon motion of the state. That indictment had charged him with burglarizing Daisy Cunningham’s house on Hodges Drive on Jan. 23, 2016. The sentence enhancement portion of the indictment was also dismissed upon motion of the state.
Davis was released Jan. 13 of this year on Earned Release Supervision with MDOC, according to the Police Department.
Regarding his early release, Hunter told aldermen, “We can only expect more people to be released early,” referring to conversations with MDOC officials about prison overcrowding and conditions.
The indictment in the burglary for which Davis was convicted had been enhanced because it was committed against a victim who was 65 years of age or older “under circumstances likely to terrorize the occupant.” The victim, Melvin Fason, was in his late 80s at the time. The burglary occurred while he was home on Waterworks Road on Oct. 10, 2015.
According to court documents, Davis and two others forced their way into Fason’s house while he was sleeping, placed clothing or a blanket over his head and stole two firearms. Police arrested Davis and the other two suspects within three days of the burglary. One was a 17-year-old who was later brought before Youth Court for adjudication, Circuit Court records indicate.
The other accomplice was Rodney N. Robinson, now 27. He and Davis were originally co-indicted but Davis’ case was later severed from Robinson’s.
Robinson went to trial in June 2016 and a jury found him guilty of burglary of an occupied dwelling under circumstances likely to terrorize the occupant. The jury also found he should be subject to the enhanced penalty, which provided he could be imprisoned for a term up to twice that authorized.
Robinson, who received a 35-year sentence, later moved for a judgment not withstanding the verdict, or in the alternative, a new trial. The circuit court ultimately denied the motion and the Mississippi Court of Appeals affirmed his sentence in September 2017.
