A Hot Springs man was arrested Friday for allegedly withholding information concerning his part in the armed robbery of a convenience store in August.
Asher Oliver King, 20, who lists a Crutchfield Street address, was taken into custody around 4:30 p.m. and charged with a felony count of hindering apprehension or prosecution, punishable by up to 20 years in prison. He was later released on $5,000 bond and is set to appear Oct. 9 in Garland County District Court.
According to the probable cause affidavit, King was involved in the robbery of the E-Z Mart, 505 Summer St., on Aug. 8. Dylan Kalani Rodrigues, 19, allegedly entered the store, pointed a handgun at the clerk, and demanded all the packs of Newport 100 cigarettes.
The clerk complied and Rodrigues reportedly left with 28 packs valued at $203.84. Rodrigues was arrested on Aug. 15 on a charge of aggravated robbery, punishable by up to life in prison. He remained in custody Monday in lieu of $20,000 bond and is set for a felony review hearing on Oct. 8 in Garland County District Court.
A video from a neighboring business reportedly revealed Rodrigues was dropped off by an early 2000s model green Dodge Ram pickup truck with damage to the driver's side front bumper and a scooter in the bed. Prior to Rodrigues' arrest, a Hot Springs police officer located the truck reportedly used in the armed robbery at King's home.
King was not home at the time but later voluntarily came to the police department and gave a statement. He allegedly admitted he was driving his truck the night of the robbery but claimed he only dropped off Rodrigues behind the E-Z Mart because they were in an argument over money Rodrigues reportedly owed him.
King reportedly said he got tired of arguing, pulled over, and ordered Rodrigues out of the vehicle. He said after dropping Rodrigues off, he took another passenger to his grandparent's house in the 200 block of Hobson and then went home. King denied knowing Rodrigues had planned to rob the store, claiming he knew nothing of it until the police contacted his father about the truck being used in the robbery.
After speaking with King, the officer spoke to Rodrigues, who allegedly admitted to the robbery. He was taken into custody and questioned further.
During the interview, Rodrigues reportedly contradicted King's statement, claiming a third person in the vehicle "basically planned it" and King was there the entire time. He said the third person kept talking about robbing a place to get cigarettes and reportedly convinced him to do it.
All three allegedly began driving around in King's truck before selecting the E-Z Mart. After the robbery, King and the other passenger picked up Rodrigues a few blocks away and they divided up the packs of cigarettes and later sold some to friends. Rodrigues also provided information that led police to two additional witnesses.
One witness reportedly gave a statement corroborating what Rodrigues said. The witness said King and the third person had reportedly been at one of the witnesses' homes talking about robbing someone or someplace to get money for cigarettes.
The third man allegedly suggested they get Rodrigues to do it because he was "expendable." After that, the pair reportedly picked up Rodrigues and went on to rob the store. A few hours later, King and the other man reportedly returned to the home of one of the witnesses with cigarettes, bragging that Rodrigues had robbed a store.
Local on 10/02/2018