Convict testifies in court

Man who accepted plea agreement says defendant isn't his holdup accomplice

Web posted October 29, 1998

By Alisa DeMao
Staff Writer

An Augusta man who has pleaded guilty to multiple armed robbery and weapons charges took the stand Wednesday to try to clear a man charged as his accomplice, but he couldn't give key details about the mysterious figure he said was his real partner in crime.

Eric DeWayne Mullins, 21, accepted a plea negotiation Tuesday in return for a 25-year sentence. He testified Wednesday that a friend named ``Tony'' was his partner in the holdups, not 22-year-old Nicholas Susan, who faces a lifetime behind bars if convicted.

Mr. Susan rejected a similar plea negotiation and faces five consecutive life sentences on top of 40 years. A third co-defendant, 21-year-old Renita Sherrill Hatcher, also pleaded guilty and received a 12-year-prison sentence.

Mr. Mullins told prosecutors when he was cross-examined that he could not give them an address or phone number for Tony and was unable to provide a pager number, although he said he paged Tony to meet him before the holdups in March.

Prosecutors also asked Mr. Mullins what he did with the money that was taken in the holdups at area convenience stores and restaurants; he admitted he bought drugs with some of it. He said he couldn't provide any details about the person he bought the drugs from and that he wouldn't ``snitch.''

Tony wasn't mentioned to police when Mr. Mullins was arrested because investigators didn't question him after the arrest, he testified.

``But I wouldn't have told them, anyway, because I wouldn't have talked to them,'' he said. ``I didn't want to make it easy for them.''

Mr. Mullins and Mr. Hatcher were arrested about a week before Mr. Susan went into the law enforcement center for questioning March 16 when, police say, Mr. Susan pulled a loaded gun and held it to his own head in an interview room, threatening suicide.

Investigator Scott Peebles, who testified he received a meritorious service commendation for negotiating with Mr. Susan and convincing him to put the gun down, also testified that Mr. Susan never pointed the gun at any police officers and told officers he didn't plan to shoot them.

A gas station clerk who was robbed during a March 2 holdup testified Tuesday that the gun detectives took from Mr. Susan was the same gun wielded by one of the robbers.

Alisa DeMao can be reached at (706) 823-3223 or newsroom@augustachronicle.com.