Two men pleaded not guilty in Athens County Common Pleas Court yesterday to charges stemming from an alleged robbery at the Wal-Mart on East State Street.
Jeremy Burns, 31, of Athens, faces charges of felony robbery after allegedly trying to steal goods from Wal-Mart on March 25. Ian Stevers, 22, of Pomeroy, Ohio, was charged with complicity to robbery.
Both crimes are second-degree felonies and carry sentences of two to eight years in prison. The level of felony was increased because Burns allegedly used force against a Wal-Mart employee, according to Lt. Randy Gray of the Athens Police Department.
Gray could not specify what the goods were.
Judge Michael Ward set bond at $50,000 for Burns and $25,000 for Stevers.
Stevers was arrested March 28 after the Athens Police Department determined he was being hidden at a residence in The Plains. A K-9 unit was used when Stevers attempted to flee and refused to comply. The dog then knocked Stevers to the ground with its front paws. Stevers was uninjured.
Another person in the house, Nichol LaFleur, 21, of Athens, was arrested for obstruction of justice, but those charges were dismissed April 6.
Gray said that, when available, the use of a K-9 unit is typical in such a situation.
Those arrests led police to Burns, who was arrested later that night on Carroll Road in Athens.
Both men are incarcerated in the Southeastern Ohio Regional Jail and have pre-trial hearings May 29, with jury trials tentatively scheduled for June 7.
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Jess Mosser
