A Chattanooga couple on Friday morning described a frightening home invasion that a Memphis pair are accused of committing.
Charges were bound to the Grand Jury against Darion Merriweather and William Edward Farmer IV. Judge Gerald Webb increased the bond for their aggravated burglary charges to $75,000.
Farmer and Merriweather are facing two counts of kidnapping, aggravated robbery, and aggravated burglary.
Farmer is also charged with unlawful possession of a weapon. The pair has been previously convicted in Memphis for carjacking, evading arrest, theft and more, authorities said.
Two victims said they were sitting on their porch June 18 at around 3 p.m. when the first victim went inside to grab something. Shortly after, he headed back outside when two men with guns, one described as stocky and the other as tall and slim, immediately invaded his home.
“As soon as I opened the door I had a gun to my head and was being pushed back inside,” said victim 1. “A man forced me to sit down and hit me; one of them said if I moved they would kill me.”
Victim 2 said the “tall and slim” man who is suspected to be Farmer, forced him to get on the floor and pointed a gun at him. The invaders allegedly told the victims they wanted money but victim 1 said he did not have any. Then the tall and slim man went into the back room and took victim 1’s gun and wallet before leaving.
“It was over in less than five minutes,” said victim 1.
“I was devastated, I couldn’t believe it was happening,” said victim 2.
The victims said the invaders had bandanas covering the bottom half of their faces. They said the stocky man, who is suspected to be Merriweather, had a green bandana on and the “tall and slim” man had a white bandana. The victims said they had trouble remembering specifics about the invaders because the incident was quick.
Police said two firearms were discovered. Photos of Merriweather and Farmer were quickly emailed to police and they were arrested shortly after. Victim 1 got his gun and wallet back about 30 minutes after the invasion.
Friday morning in court, DNA search warrants were conducted on the defendants.