Smith Gets 3-Year Robbery Sentence In Set-Up At Lee Highway Motel

  • Tuesday, October 17, 2017
Joshua Tyson Smith
Joshua Tyson Smith

Joshua Tyson Smith has been sentenced to three years in state prison for his part in a robbery in which a man said he was lured by a woman to the Airport Inn via Facebook, then two robbers came out while he was having sex with the woman.

Smith, 22, appeared before Judge Barry Steelman.

Prosecutor Cameron Williams said a similar plea deal is set for Derek Hereford later.

Hereford has an extensive criminal record.

Sarah Harris, 22, is also charged and her case will be handled later.

The prosecutor said the victim has since moved to Florida.

The victim first described a black male and a white male who were involved in the incident at the Airport Inn on Lee Highway in June 2016.
 
He later gave police pictures he found on social media of Smith wearing a green shirt and jeans with a visible blue tattoo on his hand, all matching the description from incident.
 
The victim picked Hereford out of a photo lineup.

Both men were charged with aggravated robbery, unlawfully carrying or possessing a weapon, and criminal conspiracy.

The victim told police he had been talking to Ms. Harris on Facebook for a few months when she called him to hook up with her at the motel. He said she set him up for a robbery.
 
 After arriving at the hotel, the victim said he and Ms. Harris sat on the bed and talked before engaging in sexual intercourse. When he heard a noise in the bathroom, however, he went to investigate. It was then, he told police, that two men, one white and one black, came out with handguns. He said Ms. Harris quickly got dressed, not appearing surprised.
 
 Mr. Martinez told police the white male was very aggressive and seemed to be under the influence of drugs. The victim said the man told him to sit in the corner by the bathroom and threatened to shoot him.

 

He said the black male was calm and informed him they were not going to harm him, but were going to take his stuff. The same man then told the white male suspect to keep the gun on the victim and told Ms. Harris to go get the car. Mr. Martinez said Ms. Harris was not threatened or forced to leave.

 

 All three of the suspects had backpacks, the victim said. He informed officers that they took beer from the fridge, $600 in cash, his cell phone, and his 2003 Mercedes E320. He said the black male told him they would “drop” his vehicle somewhere in the area.

 

 According to the victim, the same suspect then stated, “You (mess) up when you (mess) with b---- like that.”

 

 Mr. Martinez told police the suspects took the room phone with them when they left. He also described seeing a picture of Ms. Harris on Facebook with the two suspects.

 

 After discovering that Ms. Harris, who is from McDonald, Tn., put the hotel room in her name on the check-in sheet, officers issued a warrant for her arrest.

 

 
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