MEADVILLE – A man and two women are in custody today after aquick response by Franklin County deputies spoiled their getawayduring an armed robbery at Midway Store on Highway 84 Tuesdayevening, authorities said.

Michael Shane Hancock, 18, of 644 Hancock Road, Meadville;Courtney Lambert, 19, of 7146 Highway 567, Meadville; and LeiLeyanna Chamberland, 18, of 22 Oak Glen Dr., Greenville, S.C., arebeing held in the Franklin County Jail awaiting an initial hearingthis afternoon on charges of armed robbery. Hancock has also beencharged with attempted auto theft.

Hancock and the two women are also suspected in a robbery withinthe past two weeks in Amite County, said Franklin County SheriffJames Newman.

Newman credited a quick response by deputies for thearrests.

“We were fortunate enough to have officers in the area,” hesaid. “We had officers on the scene in three minutes.”

According to Newman, Lambert and Chamberland allegedly droppedoff Hancock some distance from the store around 5 p.m. and heapproached through the woods while donning a full-face mask. Whenhe entered the store, he demanded cash and retreated into the woodswith an undisclosed amount of money, which was recovered followinghis arrest.

“He did not display a weapon,” Newman said. “He did have a bulgein his pocket. We did not find a weapon on him during the arrest,but we’re not ruling it out. We do believe he had a small caliberhandgun.”

The sheriff said investigators believe Hancock used one ofseveral guns stolen during an Amite County robbery in the MidwayStore incident. The weapon was likely abandoned in the woods whenHancock realized officers were closing in on him, Newman said.

The quick response by deputies prevented Lambert and Chamberlandfrom picking up Hancock as planned, the sheriff said.

“We felt we had him contained in a two-mile radius, which wedid,” Newman said.

Hancock was arrested around 9 p.m. after a resident in thesearch area called 911 to report a prowler in her carport, thesheriff said.

“He had some pliers and was going to attempt to hotwire thevehicle,” Newman said.

Lambert and Chamberland were stopped approximately an hourearlier by suspicious officers, he said.

Investigators had already identified Hancock as a possiblesuspect and Lambert was a known associate of his, Newman said.Deputies apprehended the two women on Highway 570 south of Highway98 after witnesses reported seeing the car in the area at the timeof the robbery.

Newman said he appreciated the help and support of FranklinCounty Constable Paul Springs, the Mississippi Highway SafetyPatrol, the Department of Wildlife, Fisheries and Parks and theBude Police Department on the case. The Amite County Sheriff’sDepartment also helped identify the suspects and providedinformation on the previous robbery.

The Lincoln County Sheriff’s Department and Brookhaven PoliceDepartment also assisted in the case, Newman said.

“They had a room at a local hotel in Brookhaven. The plan was toreturn to that room,” the sheriff said.

Investigators plan to search the room for additional evidencetoday, Newman said.