Jordan Michael Garcia Crabtree, 31, Indianapolis
HANCOCK COUNTY — An Indianapolis man is sitting in the county jail facing armed robbery charges stemming from an incident at a local gas station officials say occurred in the early morning hours Monday, May 20.
Jordan Michael Garcia Crabtree, 31, 1600 block of South Asbury, has been charged with a Level 3 felony count of armed robbery where officials say he took property while threatening to use force.
Crabtree’s case was officially opened late Wednesday in Hancock County Superior Court 1 where a senior judge, Kim Van Valer, handled the initial appearance. A not guilty plea was entered and a public defender was appointed. A $20,000 cash bond was set along with a no contact order.
According to a probable cause affidavit, Crabtree used force when he robbed the Circle K gas station around 12:45 a.m. Monday at 1124 W. Main St. Officials from the Greenfield Police Department went to the scene after they were informed a subject, later identified as Crabtree, came into the Circle K, took some articles, and then left the area in a vehicle.
The employee working at the gas station told officials a white male walked in to the Circle K wearing an orange hooded sweatshirt (with hood down) and a black jacket and was hovering over register 1. The male then went to the rear of the Circle K and retrieved an energy drink from the refrigerator and came to the counter. He then placed the drink on the counter and asked for three $5 lottery tickets and a pack of menthol cigarettes.
The employee then told officials that when she swiped the method of payment, it was declined, the report stated. At this point, a woman came into the store asking the male what was taking so long and then went back outside. The male, Crabtree, was lingering around and asked to try his card again, but it was again declined, the report stated.
Crabtree ended up leaving the store, the affidavit said, but came back a few minutes later. This time he had the hood on the sweatshirt up, the report said. When the employee asked him if there was anything she could do for him, Crabtree informed her there was. “The male informed her that he needed everything that he came in for earlier,” the report stated.
The male, later identified as Crabtree, then showed the employee a gun and informed her he was not playing and that he had a gun and also wanted what was in the register. The affidavit said the employee gave the man the money and the man left the store, so the employee quickly called the police.
Law enforcement soon received information on the vehicle in the robbery from video surveillance in nearby Madison County where the vehicle was seen going to gas station at 925 Martin Luther King Boulevard.
Officials there detained a male at the gas station and a female nearby in the 2100 block of Hendricks Street after law enforcement found she had dropped a male at the Anderson gas station. While that male was eventually cleared and released, another male, who was wearing similar clothing and was the one who the woman actually dropped off, was said to be located at the home on Hendricks Street.
Police got photos of that male and the female, and the Circle K employee identified Crabtree as the person who robbed the store and the woman was the one who came in the store.
Crabtree was arrested at his mother’s house in Anderson. Once in custody, Crabtree admitted to being at the Circle K gas station in Greenfield during the time of the reported robbery, the affidavit said. Crabtree also admitted to taking three purple in color five ($5) dollar scratch off lottery tickets and U.S. Currency from the Circle K gas station, however he did not provide an exact amount.
The woman who was with Crabtree was not charged. She told officials Crabtree couldn’t carry a gun because he’s a felon, but he had a BB gun for target practice. Officials eventually found the BB gun after a search was conducted on the suspected vehicle, the report stated.
Crabtree was still listed as an inmate in the county jail and is due back in court, Wednesday, June 5 for a pretrial conference.
