1 killed in jewelry store smash-and-grab

Police search for thieves that shot store owner

One carried a gun and one had a hammer as four men walked into a Villa Rica jewelry store Wednesday afternoon, according to police. A fifth man was supposed to be the getaway driver.

The attempted armed robbery ended with one person dead and another in custody, Capt. Keith Shaddix with Villa Rica police told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

“We have one person in custody, and we do believe he was the shooter,” Shaddix said Wednesday night.

For investigators in the town that straddles Douglas and Carroll counties, it was the second shooting in less than 24 hours. Late Tuesday, a convenience store clerk shot and killed a 19-year-old robbery suspect, according to police.

Wednesday’s robbery attempt at the Mobley Company Jewelers store didn’t appear to be related, Shaddix said. But the crimes were unsettling to the small town.

Wednesday’s heist happened in a strip mall on South Carroll Road, near I-20. The victim’s name was not released late Wednesday pending notification of family members, Shaddix said.

Investigators were reviewing surveillance video from outside the store, but had not been able late Wednesday to view footage from inside the store. Details regarding what led to the gunfire were not available.

The hammer used inside the store was left behind, Shaddix said. But the other suspects were able to evade police.

The Carroll County Sheriff’s Office was assisting with the investigation.