Archived News

Police catch patio thief

The Dunwoody Police Department arrested Darryl Bernard Dillard, 51, of Dunwoody, and charged him with stealing patio furniture from 2486 Mount Vernon Road June 22.

Police said Dillard took four sets of patio furniture from the outside patio of O’Brian’s Tavern. Dillard has been charged with one count of theft by taking and is being held at the DeKalb County jail.

In addition to the theft at O’Brian’s, similar thefts have occurred at Allison’s Restaurant, located at 5550 Chamblee Dunwoody Road; Carvel Ice Cream Shop at 2482 Jett Ferry Road; and the Taki Japanese Steakhouse at 4711 Ashford Dunwoody Road.

The Dunwoody Police Department is continuing its investigation into the other patio thefts and said Dillard is a suspect in those as well.

Fernbank Science Center holds open house

Residents are encouraged to visit Fernbank Science Center June 30 10 a.m.-5 p.m. for free planetarium shows, exhibits and the last chance to walk through Fernbank Forest before it closes temporarily.

The free day is to thank residents for the recent outpouring of public support in response the DeKalb County School District’s decision to drastically cut the center’s budget, and reduce staff and programming, a press release said.

The Fernbank Science Center is located at 156 Heaton Park Drive Northeast in Atlanta.

Justice Department announces lawsuit to protect rights of military and overseas voters in Georgia

The United States Department of Justice (DOJ) announced June 28 that it filed a lawsuit against the state of Georgia and its chief election official to help ensure that military service members, their families and U.S. citizens living overseas have the opportunity to fully participate in Georgia’s Aug. 21 federal primary runoff election and all future federal runoff elections.

The lawsuit, brought under the Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act (UOCAVA), was filed in the U.S. District Court in Atlanta. The suit alleges that Georgia’s procedures are inadequate to ensure its military and overseas voters can fully participate in the state’s August primary runoff election, should one be necessary, a press release states.

A press release from DOJ said the suit is necessary because under Georgia’s election calendar, official runoff election ballots will not be available to be sent until after UOCAVA’s deadline of July 7, the 45th day before this year’s primary runoff election.

Undercover firearms investigation nets 60 arrests, 270 firearms taken off streets

Federal and state law enforcement officials announced the takedown of a long-term storefront sting operation designed to focus on illegal gun trafficking in Atlanta June 27, which resulted in the arrest of more than 60 defendants and federal charges filed against 40 of those defendants on federal firearms and drug trafficking charges.

United States Attorney Sally Quillian Yates said the storefront operation, called “Operation Trapdoor,” featured an undercover business located on Metropolitan Parkway in Atlanta that operated as a cellphone and vehicle alteration business. Undercover agents, posing as store managers and employees, learned about people in the area who were trafficking in firearms and drugs, and weapons traffickers, drug traffickers and convicted felons began approaching the undercover agents to sell guns and drugs.

Yates said the storefront was outfitted with audio and video recording equipment that monitored and preserved all the conversations and interactions between the agents and the defendants. Altogether, agents purchased 270 firearms—45 of which were stolen—as well as illegal narcotics. Nearly all of the defendants indicted on federal charges are felons and under federal law it is a criminal offense for a felon to possess a firearm. 

Contraband taken off the streets during the operation includes 3, 906 rounds of ammunition; 205 handguns; 33 rifles; 25 shotguns; seven sawed-off shotguns; two silencers; two bullet-proof vests and three smoke grenades.

Drugs seized in the operations includes 12,339 grams of marijuana valued at $40,800; 633 grams of cocaine valued at $69,630.00; 961 grams of crack cocaine with a street value of $105,710; 402 grams of heroin with a street value of $77,990; 144 grams of ecstasy/MDMA with a street value of $7200; 174 grams of methamphetamine with a street value of $26,100; 41 pills of oxycodone with a street value of $2,050; 39 pills of Xanax with a street value of $780.

The defendants were indicted on charges ranging from possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, possession of an unregistered sawed-off firearm, possession of a stolen firearm, unlawful dealing in firearms without a license, and possession of controlled substances with intent to distribute.

Those arrested include Atlanta residents Mohammed Bah, 38; Elizer Owens, 20; Hagie Tunkara, 31; Mack Patterson, Jr., 29; Nathaniel Andrews, 23; Cornelius Pierce, 20; Jarod Gore, 23; Andrew Benford, 27; Quintavious Render, 23; Travis Yarbrough, 26; Howard Craig, 22; Khalif Jackson, 24; Antwan Lucas, 34; and William Wilder, 31.