Fugitives to face felony charges
Published 10:34 am Thursday, September 29, 2016
Two men charged in connection with an ATM theft in Brookhaven and a home invasion in Ridgeland could be linked to several similar crimes in the metro Jackson area, police said.
“We learned earlier this week that these two gentlemen were identified as having committed an ATM theft in Brookhaven,” Ridgeland Police Chief John Neal said in a press conference Wednesday.
Thaddeus Lathomas Jarvis, 33, of Baton Rouge, Louisiana, was arrested about 6 p.m. Tuesday at a Waffle House by Richland police officers as he was attempting to leave the metro area in a Chevrolet Silverado stolen from Brandon, Neal said.
Jarvis has connections on the Gulf Coast and police suspect he was headed there, he said.
Richland police said Jarvis was in possession of a stolen firearm, cocaine, marijuana and about $2,340 in cash. Police believe the cash was stolen from an ATM heist in the metro area. Jarvis also has felony warrants in Louisiana.
He will be charged in Richland with possession of a stolen vehicle, possession of a stolen firearm and possession of cocaine.
Gregory Ponnell Trigg, 38, of Jackson, was found soon after Jarvis’ arrest.
“Information was gathered from Jarvis that led us to where Trigg was located at a hotel in Byram,” Neal said. “The U.S. Marshals Task Force set up surveillance at that hotel, and Mr. Trigg was taken into custody shortly after 10 p.m.”
Neal said Trigg was a career criminal “but a dumb criminal, because he was posting to social media wearing a stolen Rolex. We love dumb criminals.”
Several firearms were recovered during the arrest, Neal said. The guns and some jewelry officers recovered is believed to have been stolen during a Sept. 12 home invasion and robbery on Wendover Drive in Ridgeland, Neal said. In that case, the homeowner was leaving for work when he was approached in his garage by two armed masked men and forced inside, Neal said. The man and his wife were held captive for about 20 minutes while the robbers ransacked the house.
“We were able to determine through that investigation that there was approximately $70,000 worth of jewelry and cash stolen,” Neal said.
Trigg and Jarvis are being held without bond at the Madison County Jail on armed robbery, kidnapping, burglary of an occupied dwelling and conspiracy to commit a crime.
The two might also be suspects in some recent ATM thefts reported in the Jackson metro area. They could also be linked to some auto burglary and home-invasion cases, Neal said.
“These are very violent, dangerous individuals out of the metro area,” Neal said. “As this case goes on and as other agencies look into some of their actions, we anticipate additional charges being filed and clearing up a lot of crime in this area.”
Brookhaven Police Chief Bobby Bell said Jarvis and Trigg will face felony charges here as well.
“It’s a process,” he said. “We have to wait until our turn for them.”
Bell said he expects to charge the men with felony burglary of a business for the ATM theft at the C Store on Hwy. 51 on Sept. 20. The men are suspected of using a Ford F-250 to crash into the store’s wall to take the ATM. The truck, which had been stolen from Crystal Springs, was found later that morning on fire behind the Jehovah’s Witnesses Kingdom Hall near the C Store.
He said they will also be charged with theft of the ATM, grand larceny for the money that was stolen from the ATM and possession of a stolen vehicle within Brookhaven city limits.
“We’re going to charge them with all that we can,” he said.
Several agencies besides the Brookhaven Police Department were involved in the investigation into Trigg and Jarvis, including the Gulf Coast Regional Fugitive Task Force, the U.S. Marshal Service, Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office, Crystal Springs Police Department and various police departments in and around the Jackson metro area.
Bell believes the two men, who were considered armed and dangerous while they were being sought, had probably spent some time in Brookhaven before the C Store ATM theft.
“More than likely they had been in and took a survey of what it would take,” he said.
Their alleged crime in Brookhaven may have led to their capture.
“We wanted them off the streets as soon as possible,” Bell said.
Lincoln County Sheriff Steve Rushing said the men are also suspects in an ATM theft at the General Store in the Loyd Star community in August.
The suspects in that heist used a vehicle to ram the side of the store and steal the ATM.
Anyone with information about either crime is asked to call Brookhaven Police Department at 601-833-2424, Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office at 601-833-5251 or CrimeStoppers at 601-823-0150. Tips leading to an arrest may be eligible for a cash reward up to $1,000.