4 plead guilty to armed robbery in Cherokee County, sentenced to prison
CHEROKEE COUNTY, Ga. - Four men who pleaded guilty to a Cherokee County armed robbery in 2022 have been sentenced to prison.
It took three separate hearings on March 8 for three of the co-defendants to enter their negotiated guilty pleas to two counts of armed robbery, two counts of aggravated assault, two counts of possession of a firearm during a commission of a felony, and robbery by sudden snatching.
The fourth co-defendant entered a non-negotiated guilty plea to the same charges on Sept. 20, 2023.
Georgia vs. Omar Faines, Kristopher Maxey, Nasir Stover, and Courtney Watson
During the plea hearings, the assistant district attorney told the court the men drove to the Waverly Park neighborhood on Nov. 3, 2022 at approximately 2:30 a.m.
Omar Sheriff-Tyhear Faines, 20, of Acworth, and Nasir De’shawn Stover, 17, of Holly Springs, got out of the car and began walking through the neighborhood.
The driver, 21-year-old Kristopher Devon Maxey of Canton, and his passenger, 19-year-old Courtney Anthony Watson of Acworth, went on. They stopped at a house to pick up a man and woman that Watson reportedly knew.
The new group of four allegedly went to a convenience store to buy snacks.
When they drove back to the home, Faines and Stover ran out of woodline and approached the man and woman in the car while wearing ski masks.
They brandished weapons and stole an iPhone 13 and a small switchblade from the male victim.
The two then took their place in the car and drove away.
As they were getting away, Watson reportedly realized they had left one of their phones behind at the scene. He contacted the female victim and offered to exchange phones. The victims agreed.
When the group arrived at the house again, they snatched the phone from the victim's hands without trading it for the stolen cell phone.
The victims called 911, leading to their group's arrest.
Authorities found a Taurus G2C 9mm handgun, black ski masks, a gold-colored Halloween mask, and the items the defendants stole from the victims. It was also discovered that the four men were associated with the Bloods, a criminal street gang.
"During the armed robbery, while shaking down the victims and threatening them with a firearm, the defendants kept asking ‘where is the blicky,’ which is a Blood term for a firearm," the assistant district attorney said.
Four Bloods sentenced in Cherokee County armed robbery
Faines, Maxey and Stover pleaded guilty on March 8. They were each sentenced to 20 years, with the first 10 years to serve in confinement.
Courtney Anthony Watson, 19
Watson entered his non-negotiated guilty plea on Sept. 20, 2023. He also pleaded guilty to possession of a firearm by a first-offender probationer. He was sentenced to 30 years, with the first 20 years to serve in confinement and the remainder on probation.
All four were banned from Cherokee County and forbidden from contacting each other, the victims or any members or associates of a criminal street gang.