Less than a week after Title Bucks was robbed at gunpoint, the suspect in that robbery and several other pawn and title store robberies was captured, with the help of license plate reading technology and the sharp eyes of Conyers and Douglasville police officers.
Avery Frazier, 47 of Douglasville was identified by Conyers Police and located with the assistance of other agencies.
On Thursday, Oct. 30 just before noon, a masked man armed with a handgun robbed TitleBucks off of Ga. Hwy 138 and Flat Shoals in Conyers. The suspect locked the employees and a customer in the back room before he fled the scene. Prior to receiving the 911 call, CPD Officer Spencer Holland noticed a two-toned black and tan Ford Expedition driving erratically in the area. Holland was on his way to another call, so he was unable to address the violation at that time. A short time later, Holland saw the Expedition again heading away from the TitleBucks location. However, the automatic License Plate Reader on Holland's patrol car was able to capture and record the Expedition's tag information as he responded to the robbery call that had now been dispatched.
Holland recalled a previous lookout for a two-toned black over tan SUV involved in a similar title pawn robbery in Gwinnett in April.
Using the tag information captured by the LPR, Avery Frazier was discovered to be the registered owner of the vehicle seen leaving the area of the robbery.
Two days later, Frazier's Ford Expedition was captured on a traffic camera leaving the area of another title pawn robbery in Newnan, Ga.
Conyers Police detectives issued arrest warrants for Avery Frazier for Armed Robbery, Kidnapping, and Aggravated Assault.
With the assistance of the FBI, Avery was determined to be in the Douglasville area on Wednesday, Nov. 5 and a lookout for the vehicle was given to the Douglasville Police Department. Douglasville PD Officer Shannon Holbrook spotted the Expedition a short time later on Hwy 5 and Frazier was taken into custody without incident.
When Frazier was arrested, officer recovered items that matched surveillance video images.
"We were able to recover some clothing items that matched the robbery in Conyers. We had a previous robbery in February of the Georgia Autopawn (on Ga. Hwy 138). We recovered clothing that matched the surveillance images," said CPD spokespersion Investigator Kim Lucas.
"I am proud of our officers and how they developed the case on this subject," said Conyers Police Chief Gene Wilson. "We appreciate the assistance from the other agencies and the FBI. My hope is that he stays off the streets for many, many years."
Avery Frazier was booked into the Rockdale County Jail and is currently in jail.
Frazier is suspected of multiple similar robberies throughout the state. Investigations are ongoing.
Conyers police have been using automatic license plate readers for about two years. The equipment is expensive, said Lucas. The department has two LPRs, and two patrol vehicles are outfitted with the readers and 10 officers trained to use them.
