Police recover weapons, stolen coins
Published 10:19 pm Thursday, May 5, 2011
Thursday arrests also resulted in the recovery of 16 guns and stolen coins for the Selma Police Department.
Selma Chief of Police William T. Riley said Jason Andrew Craig, 25, Benjamin Earl Todd, 21, Emmanuel Benjermain Ware, 20, and Tobby Jack Waites, 19, were all arrested and charged with one count of receiving stolen property first degree and their bonds were set for $15,000.
The charge was connected to an April 28 incident on Landline Road in which the coins and guns were reported stolen. Recovering that amount of guns, Riley said, is huge because of the impact that number of firearms could have in the wrong hands..
“We’re very pleased to get 16 guns off the street,” he said. “Those are weapons that won’t be used to harm civilians or law enforcement. That’s a big plus for us.”
The coins were also recovered, Riley said, which is great for the family.
“That was also important because they are family heirlooms,” he said.
The original police report stated guns, coins and jewelry were stolen from the residence April 28 at 4:20 p.m.
According to the arrest reports, two black males, identified as Isaiah Simmons Jr. and Jason Craig, went into the Selma Mall branch of BankTrust and tried to exchange some of the coins for money. Because several banks had already been informed of the burglary, the teller told the two men she had to notify the bank officer.
At that point, the two men fled the scene in a red Toyota Camry bearing Jefferson County plates.
The suspects left the coins behind and were captured on video. Craig and Todd were later located and brought in for questioning and Craig later revealed the location of the guns.
The guns were being stored at a residence to be sold later and included shotguns, rifles, handguns and antique weapons.
The four are currently being held in the Dallas County Jail.