Background: The 35/55 truck stop on Highway 35 in Vaiden, Mississippi (Google Maps). Inset: Charlie Terrell Jones (Carroll County Regional Correctional Facility).
A Mississippi man tried to gouge the eyes out of a truck stop clerk because he was upset about the price of gas, authorities say.
Charlie Terrell Jones, aged 40, faces charges of armed robbery. According to the Carroll County Sheriff’s Office, the incident took place on Monday, shortly after noon.
At the 35/55 truck stop located on Highway 35 in Vaiden, a town roughly 80 miles north of Jackson, a disagreement over gas prices escalated when a man walked in and “began to dispute the cost with the clerk.” As the dispute intensified, the employee reported that “the suspect started to assault the clerk violently and even made attempts to gouge the clerk’s eyes.”
The suspect further stands accused of striking the worker on the head — yet the ordeal did not conclude there. It is alleged that the attacker returned to his vehicle, “retrieved a gun, and demanded money from the register.”
The clerk reportedly complied, and the suspect exited the truck stop with the cash. Upon the arrival of first responders and deputies, the clerk was found “severely beaten.” He was subsequently taken to a local hospital where medical staff attended to his injuries, including providing stitches for a head wound.
Investigators were provided with a description of the attack from the victim, aiding them in identifying Jones as a suspect. He was recognized due to his “history of violent offenses” and had been out on parole for merely seven months, after completing over 20 years in prison for “multiple violent crimes such as sexual battery and two counts of kidnapping,” according to the Carroll County Sheriff’s Office.
Deputies located Jones and set up surveillance while they secured a warrant for his arrest. Other agencies, including the U.S. Marshals Service, were called in for help, but before officials could arrest him, Jones had left the area.
Law enforcement reportedly spotted him heading south on Highway 35 toward Kosciusko, and a roadblock was set up. It appears that Jones was not alone, deputies said, and “eventually, the suspect and his driver were forced to stop at the roadblock, and the suspect was taken into custody without incident.”
Jones was placed into the Carroll County Regional Correctional Facility on the armed robbery charge. The sheriff’s office said days later that additional charges of possession of a weapon by a felon and failure to register as a sex offender were expected.
“I am grateful to the Lord that this incident was resolved without any further violence or injury,” Carroll County Sheriff Clint Walker said. “Jones is a threat to society, and I am glad that he has been removed from our streets.”
“Again, the quick and dedicated investigation by our deputies and the cooperation between all the law enforcement agencies involved made all the difference in the resolution of this case,” the sheriff added. Jones was awaiting a first appearance in court as of Tuesday.
