Willie Troy Morris

Morris

A North Augusta man wanted on charges connected to the assault and robbery of a 70-year-old man at a Whiskey Road hotel earlier this year has been arrested in Ohio.

Willie Troy Morris, 37, of Palmetto Avenue, is wanted on charges of first-degree burglary, first-degree assault and battery, kidnapping and strong-armed robbery, according to Aiken Public Safety.

Morris was arrested Nov. 21 by the Mahoning County Sheriff's Office in Ohio for active arrest warrants issued by Aiken Public Safety, and he is now waiting to be extradited back to Aiken, according to Mahoning County jail records.

The arresting agency was the Mahoning Valley Violent Crimes Task Force.

On March 4, Aiken Public Safety officers responded to the Howard Johnson hotel on Whiskey Road at 10:25 p.m. in reference to an assault, according to the report.

Upon arrival, officers found the 70-year-old victim inside his hotel room suffering from "severe physical injuries" related to the assault, the report states.

A hotel employee told investigators a member of the housekeeping staff went inside the victim's room to clean and discovered the victim lying on the ground, police reported.

Officers observed the victim had two black eyes and appeared to have a broken jaw.

The victim told investigators he had been at the Cork N' Bull bar on Whiskey Road on March 3 to watch his son perform, according to the report.

In the early morning hours of March 4, the victim walked back to the Howard Johnson where he was confronted by an unknown black male, the report states.

The suspect then forced his way into the victim’s room and asked why he was "trying to talk to a black female," the report states.

The victim denied trying to talk to anyone, but the suspect started attacking him, according to the report.

Following the attack, the victim’s cellphone, car keys, Rolex watch and wallet containing $100 in cash were stolen, the report states.

EMS was called to the scene and the victim was taken to a local hospital to receive treatment for several "facial fractures" and a "fractured back" he sustained in the assault, police reported.

Investigators spoke with several individuals at the scene, reviewed surveillance footage of the incident and were able to quickly identify Morris as the suspect.

Police also claimed there was a second male suspect who accompanied Morris at the hotel during the incident, but the second suspect, who is described as a heavy-set black male with no hair, is still unknown as of Thursday.


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