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FRANKLIN -- A Pendleton County man is behind bars after allegedly robbing an area convenience store with a knife.
Marshall Gary Brooks, 31, of Franklin, is charged with one felony count of armed robbery. He is incarcerated at Potomac Highlands Regional Jail on a $50,000 cash-only bond.
At approximately 10:20 p.m. on Jan. 19, Senior Trooper J.M. Hebb, of the West Virginia State Police, received a call regarding an armed robbery at the BP gas station in Franklin, according to a criminal complaint filed in Pendleton County Magistrate Court.
Hebb met with Chief Deputy Bowers, of the Pendleton County Sheriff's Office, who told him that a man identified as Brooks had robbed the store, police said.
Hebb took a statement from the cashier of the store, who told police Brooks had come into the store, pulled the knife and said, "I'm not playing," before going around the counter and demanding that he "pop the register." Brooks then told the employee to put the money in a bag.
While Brooks was leaving the store, the cashier grabbed the phone in an attempt to call 911, when another man told him to put the phone down or he would come over the counter and "do it again," prompting the employee to put the phone down, the complaint states.
The other man then asked for a pack of cigarettes. The employee asked him if he was going to pay for them and he replied "yes, he wasn't going to hit me twice in one night," according to the complaint. After that man left, the employee locked the door and contacted 911.
The employee reportedly told officers the knife Brooks had was approximately four to six inches long.
Hebb reviewed surveillance footage from the store and was able to identify the man with the knife to be Brooks, police said.
Hebb, Bowers and another officer began looking for Brooks and located him walking down Walnut Street in Franklin, according to the complaint.
Brooks walked toward the officers and handed them a brown paper bag that contained $291, the complaint states.
Brooks was instructed to place his hands behind his back because he was under arrest, and he said, "No, I am not going back to that (expletive) place," before pulling a knife out of his pocket, opening it and pointing it at the officers, court documents state.
Officers drew their weapons and Bowers pulled out his taser. Brooks began backing away from the officers while waiving the knife at them, according to the complaint.
After Brooks continued to refuse to put down the weapon, Bowers shocked him with the taser, causing him to fall to the ground and drop the knife. Hebb removed the knife from Brooks' reach and handcuffed him at that time, the complaint states.