Two more men have been arrested in connection with the shooting at the Waffle House in Eatonton on Monday, Oct. 28, bringing the total arrests to three, with more pending, Eatonton Police Chief Howell Cardwell said.
“We’ve issued 20 warrants about that Waffle House case, but nobody is from Eatonton; they’re all from out of town,” Cardwell said. “If you can’t behave, stay out of this town.”
No one was injured in the barrage of gunfire that happened around 1 a.m. in the parking lot around Waffle House, located on Walmart Drive.
As previously reported, Eatonton Police Officer Jeremy McClure was already on the scene before the shots were fired. A few moments earlier, McClure had dispersed a crowd from the Jet Food Store #44 at the intersection of Gray Road and U.S. Hwy. 441. The crowd moved across the street into Walmart, Waffle House, and Zaxby’s parking lots.
Cardwell said that the Waffle House was busy with numerous cars and people in the parking lot and standing room only inside.
A gunshot reportedly was heard, and smoke from the gun was seen rising in the sky behind a gathered crowd at the bottom of the Waffle House driveway. McClure immediately radioed for backup, grabbed his rifle, and entered the Waffle House to ensure everyone's safety.
Cardwell arrived a few minutes later.
“I don’t know which direction they were firing, but as soon as that one shot went off, the chaos starts, and people were running everywhere, pulling out guns, firing gunshots,” Cardwell is quoted saying in The Messenger’s original story of the incident. “We see one individual, then three or four, running off and firing back into the crowd. Everybody’s got a gun. It’s surprising to me there weren’t a lot of victims.”
Although no people were hit by the bullets, several vehicles and an exterior wall of Zaxby’s were hit. Cardwell said his officers picked up about 30 shell casings from 9mm handguns and .223 automatic rifles.
A 16-year-old from Greensboro was arrested the next day and charged with misdemeanor reckless conduct.
Cardwell said the teen, who is not named due to his age, was the driver of the vehicle the shooter was in when they left the Waffle House parking lot.
On Nov. 4, Jacameron Brown, 17, of Greensboro, also was arrested in connection with the shooting. He is being held in Putnam County jail on charges of aggravated assault, criminal property damage (second degree), possession of a firearm or knife during the commission of a crime, possession of a firearm by a person under 18 years of age, and unauthorized discharge of firearms within 50 yards of the public highway.
Cardwell said Javon Quentin Robinson, 20, of Milledgeville, also faces the exact charges.
Robinson had been arrested by Milledgeville authorities on the night of the shooting when he showed up at an unrelated shooting at the Milledgeville Waffle House that same night.
Milledgeville Police Department Major Brandon Sellers said a 27-year-old Milledgeville man was shot in the shoulder area of his chest and taken to the Baldwin County hospital by four men in a private vehicle. All four men stayed at the hospital and talked to Milledgeville authorities.
They were not arrested for the shooting but were arrested on charges related to possession of weapons that had been reported stolen.
Robinson was one of those four men, and after further investigation of the Eatonton Waffle House shooting, Cardwell said he got a warrant for Robinson.
The police chief said he and EPD Investigator Hargrove Jones continue to work on the case and are searching for the people for whom they have issued warrants.
“I want to keep the crime out of Eatonton; it seems like it’s creeping in, but we’re trying to keep it out,” Cardwell said.