Crime & Safety

Waffle House Robbery Suspects Fire At Police During Chase

Two men have been arrested for armed robbery, fleeing police in an incident Saturday at the Waffle House off Goshen Springs Road.

Two men have been arrested in connection to robbing a Waffle House in Norcross and firing shots at police officers during a car chase.

According to Gwinnett County Police spokesman Cpl. Jake Smith and jail records, Tamari Adams, 24, of Norcross, was arrested and charged with armed robbery, fleeing or eluding police, two counts of aggravated assault, and multiple traffic violations. Tavares Douglas Harris, 25, of Lithonia, was arrested and charged with armed robbery, providing a false name to an officer and two counts of aggravated assault. They remain in jail without bond.

The incident occurred on Saturday, April 20, around 6:50 a.m. at the Waffle House located at 6079 Goshen Springs Road in the city of Norcross.

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Two Gwinnett officers were traveling past the location and noticed a person running from the restaurant. The description of the person running from the Waffle House matched the description of the robbery perpetrator.

The suspect ran to a waiting black 1994 Honda Accord, which was driven by a second person. The suspect vehicle quickly fled the scene as the officers approached. They were arrested after a car chase that included two instances of the suspects shooting at the officers.

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Police pursued the vehicle as it left the restaurant, turning left through a red light onto Jimmy Carter Boulevard. The suspect vehicle led the officers across I-85 and toward Rockbridge Road. 

As the officers approached Rockbridge, the suspects fired multiple shots at the pursuing officers out of their back window, shattering it. The officers were not hit, according to Smith.

Shortly after the shots were fired, the suspects threw a handgun out the window. The officers backed off from the suspect vehicle but continued the pursuit. Shortly after passing through the intersection of Jimmy Carter and Rockbridge, the suspects fired a second volley of shots, striking the first officer’s patrol car. Again, the officers were not injured.

The suspects then threw a second handgun out of the window and continued to flee down Jimmy Carter.

The suspects pulled into the Home Depot at 4112 Jimmy Carter Blvd. and  drove behind the store, where they were trapped by the two pursuing officers.

The passenger fled on foot, while the driver stayed. He was arrested at the car at about 6:57 a.m. and was later identified as Adams.

At 7:04 a.m. the passenger was caught by other responding officers. He refused to cooperate and would not provide a name, but he later said his name was John Black, which turned out to be false. The Gwinnett County Sheriff’s Office identified the passenger as Harris after checking his fingerprints.

Check Norcross Patch for follow up to this story.


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