Inset: Stevi Jo Creech (Montgomery County Jail). Background: The Arby’s where Creech allegedly attacked an employee with a rock (Google Maps).
An Ohio woman, aged 21, has been detained after allegedly assaulting an Arby’s employee with a rock, causing severe injuries and distress. Stevi J. Creech was arrested last week and faces a charge of felonious assault causing serious harm, according to records.
Gerrin Rankin, a 26-year-old allegedly involved in aiding Creech during the assault, was apprehended and charged with misdemeanor criminal menacing.
On September 11, officers from the Kettering Police Department patrolling near Forrer Boulevard and Smithville Road were alerted by an Arby’s employee outside the eatery, as reported by Dayton CBS affiliate WHIO. The Arby’s resides in the 2300 block of Smithville Road.
The officers reportedly wrote that when they found her, the female employee was “screaming and bleeding from the face.”
A witness to the purported assault informed investigators that Creech and Rankin dashed into the restaurant from the drive-thru area, attacked the staff member, and then fled on foot. Creech seemed to be holding something as she entered Arby’s, the witness claimed, as per WHIO.
Surveillance video inside Arby’s allegedly captured Creech entering with an item in her right hand and heading toward the drive-thru area internally. Police reports identified the item as a large rock, according to WHIO.
Rankin can reportedly be seen entering the restaurant several seconds after Creech.
Though the alleged incident itself wasn’t recorded, the footage shows Creech and Rankin leaving Arby’s swiftly, within two minutes of their arrival. Moments afterward, the victim reportedly appears on the footage holding her face.
The witness who was present during the alleged attack reportedly told police he was about to intervene and try to end the confrontation, but said he was stopped by Rankin, who reached for the waistband of his shorts and ordered the witness to “back off.”
“[The witness] stated he took that to mean G. Rankin had a weapon, presumably a gun, and backed off without intervening,” police wrote in a probable cause affidavit.
In an interview with police, the victim said she and Creech had been together the previous night and that Creech had accused her of “stealing a roach,” referring to the leftover tip of a blunt or joint.
Following the incident, the duo were located by police and arrested a “short distance away” from the restaurant.
The AES Restaurant Group, which operates the Arby’s location, released a statement to Dayton NBC affiliate WDTN.
“AES Restaurant Group prioritizes team member safety and is fully cooperating with authorities following the incident,” the statement said. “The team member involved has received medical care and has since returned to work.”
Creech is currently being held in the Montgomery County Jail in lieu of $25,000 bond. She is scheduled to appear in court on Sept. 22.
Rankin was no longer in custody as of Thursday morning.
