Columbia man accused of trying to rob a Break Time faces more charges; woman also charged
COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)
A Columbia man who was recently accused of trying to rob a Break Time on Smiley Lane is facing more charges for allegedly burglarizing the same store.
Nakwon Harris, 22, is charged with second-degree burglary and stealing $750 or more. He is being held at the Boone County Jail without bond. An arraignment was held Friday at the Boone County Courthouse.
He was also charged earlier this month with first-degree attempted robbery, armed-criminal action, unlawful use of a weapon and second-degree kidnapping. A preliminary hearing in that case is set for 9 a.m. Tuesday, April 11.
Harris’ girlfriend, Brittany Wallace, 24, of Columbia, is charged with first-degree robbery and armed-criminal action in relation to the charges stemming from the February incident. She is being held at the Boone County Jail without bond. An arraignment was held Friday.
For the new charges, a witness said in the probable cause statement that Wallace, who was an assistant manager, opened the Break Time on Oct. 2 and discovered that $4,233.10 was stolen from the safe. The witness allegedly looked at security footage that showed Harris entering the store through the back door.
The witness allegedly told police a key is needed for entry and a six-digit code is needed to access the safe. They told police only four people knew the code, including Wallace.
Harris allegedly told police that he went through Wallace’s phone and found the code for the safe and that he took the money. He also allegedly told police that Wallace drove him during the alleged attempted robbery in February.
Wallace allegedly spoke with CPD and claimed Harris didn’t get any money from the attempted robbery and denied going to the Break Time. She changed her story when a photo of her inside the Break Time prior to Harris arriving in February, according to the probable cause statement.
Police obtained a search warrant for Wallace’s phone records and determined the phone was in the area during the alleged incident in February.
Columbia police responded to a panic alarm on Feb. 23 at the Break Time on Smiley Lane. The alleged victim told police that a man in a ski mask pointed a gun at his head in the parking lot and told him, “I’m not going to shoot you. I just want the money,” the probable cause statement said.
Once the two were inside the building, the suspect tossed the man a plastic bag and instructed him to put the money in the bag. The suspect put the gun down and the victim tried to grab it. The suspect, Harris, was able to get the gun back, fell backwards and his cellphone fell out of his pocket, according to the probable cause statement. Harris ran out the back door.
The victim gave police the phone. An officer used the phone to call 911 to obtain the phone number, which was associated with Harris. A car seen in security footage allegedly belonged to Harris’ mother.
