With his and his wife’s hands and feet tied and a gunman in the couple’s home, a Rome man did the only thing he could: He prayed.
And when he did, the home invasion suspect told him he also believed in Jesus, according to police. But that didn’t stop the suspect and three others from the home invasion, assault and robbery earlier this week.
Four people from metro Atlanta have been charged in connection with the crimes. Investigators, however, haven’t determined why the suspects traveled to Floyd County to commit the crimes, police said Friday.
A woman called 911 to report she and her husband had been tied up by four people at their home, near Stonebridge Golf Club, according to Rome police. The couple was not seriously injured.
William Burk said he was on his driveway when he was hit in the back of the head and dragged toward his house, the police report states. Burk yelled for his wife to run, but she did not have time before the suspect and Burk reached the home, police said.
Inside the home, the suspect ordered the couple to the ground and tied their hands and feet while telling them to shut up, police said.
“Mr. Burk started praying and the male told him that he believed in Jesus, too, and if he shut up, nobody would get hurt,” the report states.
While the couple was tied up, the suspects took $6,200, both of their wedding rings, a wallet and an iPhone before leaving the home. Others in the neighborhood reported seeing a Mercury Marquis leave the area, according to police.
A Floyd County officer reviewing his own dash camera footage as he responded to the home saw a vehicle matching the description of the Mercury traveling north on U.S. 27, and police alerted Chattooga County police to be on the lookout for the vehicle. Later Wednesday, the vehicle was spotted in Chattooga, and the four people inside were arrested.
Those arrested include: Alicia Noel Tindle, 23, of Stone Mountain; Adrian Delloyd Mitchell, 37, of Covington; Ryederius Barnard Ferrell, 27, of Lithonia; and Nikario Lannard Gresham, 30, of Atlanta,
The four have each been charged with two counts of kidnapping, aggravated assault and robbery, and single counts of home invasion, possession of a firearm during the commission of a crime and theft by receiving stolen property. They were being held without bond at the Floyd County jail.
About the Author
