Deputies say the suspect gave his brother's name during questioning. That name was published underneath the suspect's photo Monday.
By ALEX LEARY
Published August 3, 2004
NEW PORT RICHEY - Joey Allen Deese, 25, has an extensive arrest record in Florida, from aggravated assault to cocaine possession. On Sunday, Pasco sheriff's deputies said armed robbery was added to his rap sheet.
A man was arrested after being tackled by four stock clerks at the Kash n' Karry on Little Road. While speaking to deputies, the man admitted using a shotgun to rob the Walgreens on Majestic Boulevard in Hudson earlier Sunday morning.
He also told deputies his name was Joey Allen Deese.
On Monday, the man's mug shot appeared in the Pasco Times along with an account of the crimes of which he is accused.
But Deese didn't pull off either heist, and it wasn't his picture that ran in the paper. It was that of his brother, whom deputies now say committed both crimes.
Shannon Lee Giddens, 26, was the real culprit, the Pasco County Sheriff's Office said Monday. The Port Richey man said he identified himself as his brother because he was on probation.
Giddens was rearrested on the armed robbery charges and also for resisting arrest without violence for lying about his name.
The scheme unraveled Sunday when Giddens' mother called the Sheriff's Office to say he was missing.
"From the info she gave us, we were able to determine he gave a false name," sheriff's spokesman Kevin Doll said. Fingerprints eventually would have revealed Giddens was lying, Doll said.
Doll said it is not unusual for people to give false names, mainly for traffic infractions.
Their stories usually do not hold up long, he said.
The Walgreens robbery occurred about 12:30 a.m. Sunday. Employees reported a man carrying a shotgun robbed the store and took off with cash.
Then, about 5:30 a.m., a man entered Kash n' Karry and gave the clerk a note demanding money. The man pried open the cash register with a knife and ran toward the door with about $280 in hand.
He never made it out. Four stock clerks on break from the overnight shift saw the commotion from a bench outside the store and wrestled the robber to the ground. One of the clerks called 911 on a cell phone.
Giddens told deputies he robbed the stores to get money for his crack cocaine habit.
According to state records, Giddens has been arrested on various charges, including marijuana possession, hit and run, cocaine possession and aggravated battery.
In addition to the robbery charges Sunday, Giddens was charged with violation of probation for selling cocaine and driving with a suspended license.
He was being held Monday in county jail without bail.
- Alex Leary can be reached in west Pasco at 869-6247, or toll-free at 1-800-333-7505, ext. 6247. His e-mail address is leary@sptimes.com
