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The Courier Times
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SATURDAY, April 16,2011
Serving All of Person County Since 1881
Copyright The Courier-Times inc, 2011 All Rights Reserved
TODAY; Hi 73 Lo 47
SUNDAY; Hi 71 Lo47
MONDAY; Hi 76 Lo 52
TUESDAY; Hi 81 Lo59
75c
Our 129th Year — No. 31
Roxboro, North Carolina
Four Sections — 48 Pages
www.personcountylite.com
Robbery suspect nabbed
■ Deputy's 'critical piece of information' helped
police jail Reidsville man one day after BB&T heist
By TIM CHANDLER
Courier-Times Editor
tchandler@roxboro-courier.com
Less than 24 hours after he al
legedly robbed the BB&T bank at
500 N. Madison Blvd. at gunpoint,
a Reidsville man was taken into
custody at his home and charged
in connection with the crime.
Christian Poythress, 46, of
Reidsville was arrested at ap
proximately 2 p.m. Thursday in
connection with the armed rob
bery that took place at BB&T just
after 5 p.m. Wednesday.
Roxboro Police Chief Todd
Boycher said Poythress will
likely face additional robbery
charges.
“This has the potential to
solve several other robberies,”
Boycher said Friday morning.
“Our folks have done some check
ing and he is now a suspect in a
couple of other robberies.
“There was a robbery in
Greensboro [on March 24] where
the photo available is almost
identical to what we got of him
at the counter at BB&T, ” Boycher
Christian Poythress
added.
That photo, viewable at
ncbankrobbers. com was captured
during the robbery of a Wachovia
in Greensboro. The suspect in
that robbery is also believed to
have robbed a Triad-area BB&T
on March 2.
Boycher said Friday the arrest
of Poythress was a collaborative
effort of Roxboro police with as
sistance from a Person County
Sheriff’s Office deputy. Roxboro
Police Detective Gary Lee was the
lead investigator in the case.
“When the bank robbery call
came out, the suspect was listed
asablackmale, andablack [GMC]
Yukon was listed as the [getaway]
vehicle,” Boycher said. “Deputy
Mark Sharlow passed the vehicle
and noted that a white male was
driving. He then had the foresight
to write down the license plate in
case something was wrong with
the description.
“This was a critical piece of in
formation that our investigators
used to track this down and solve
the case,” Boycher added.
Boycher noted that the vehicle
spotted by Sharlow was “headed
south and west” shortly after the
robbery was reported.
After checking the license
plate information, police inves
tigators were able to ascertain
information on Poythress, in
cluding a photograph, which
Boycher said bore “an uncanny
resemblance,” to the photo of
the BB&T robber in photographs
provided by BB&T’s security
division.
“We went down and con
fronted him and, upon further
questioning, we did not have
any doubts that this was the
individual that [committed the
robbery],” Boycher said.
Poythress was arrested at his
apartment in Reidsville Thurs
day afternoon and he was later
transported to the Person County
Law Enforcement Center.
Boycher said items of cloth
ing Poythress is believed to have
worn during the robbery had
been recovered during a canvass
of the area near the bank.
“That, along with some other
forensic evidence should eas
ily solidify this case,” Boycher
said.
Poythress reportedly entered
BB&T just as a bank employee
was locking the door at the close
of the business day Wednesday
He then allegedly followed the
employee inside the bank, “pro
duced a [semi-automatic] hand
gun and announced a robbery,”
See ROBBERY back page
Kristy Melvin / Roxboro Police Department
UNDER ARREST — Roxboro Police Detective Gary Lee
escorts Christian Poythress of Reidsville into the Person
County Law Enforcement Center. Poythress is charged with
robbing the BB&T on Madison Boulevard Wednesday.
'We'll have
to qo along
with it'
■ BOE approves
local funding request
at Thursday meeting
By GREY PENTECOST
C-T Staff Writer
greypentecost@roxboro-courier.com
The Person County Board of Educa
tion approved a local budget request of
$8.86 million for the 2011-12 fiscal year,
and eliminated double sick day and an
nual leave benefits for dually employed
staff at its Thursday night meeting.
The flat local budget request of $8.86
million was presented to commission
ers during a joint meeting on March 14,
and a public hearing that went without
public comment was held at the opening
of Thursday’s meeting of the board of
education.
If the school board’s request is
granted, it will be the third straight
year that Person County Schools has
received the same amount of funding
from the county. PCS is anticipating a
10 percent reduction in state funding
and a reduction of about $812,000 in
See BOE back page
DOGWOODS BLOOMING
Photo by Susan Bowen
COLORS OF SPRING — Susan Bowen snapped this photo of the pink
dogwoods in bloom at Roxboro Presbyterian Church with the
steeple and sky in the background.
Champions for
Children named
■ Ray Jeffers, Jackson Elliott,
Guardian ad Litem program honored
By PHYLISS BOATWRIGHT
C-T Staff Writer
pboatwright@roxboro-courier.com
A county commissioner, the Guardian
ad Litem program and a former Piedmont
Community College vice president were
named Champions for Children this
week, during a Week of the Young Child
observance.
Judy Batten, executive director of the
Person County Partnership for Children
announced this year’s honorees during
a Week of the Young Child breakfast
Wednesday
She said that Nancy Wagstaff andthe
volunteers and staff of Person County
Guardian ad Litem (GAL) continually
go above and beyond to advocate for
abused and neglected children who are
the subjects of court cases.
The GAL volunteers must be willing
to participate in special training and
Annual Easter Egg
Hunt scheduled
Tuesday at 6 p.m.
The annual Countywide Easter
Egg Hunt, sponsored by the Person
County Recreation, Arts & Depart
ment, will be held Tuesday, April
19 at 6 p.m. at the Huck Sansbury
Recreation Complex.
The event is open to children be
tween the ages of two and 10.
The rain date for the hunt is
Wednesday, April 20.
See CHAMPIONS backpage
INSIDE Saturday
Agenda
A2
Boatwright
A2
Business
A3
Churches/Rellglon..
...B2-3
Classified
..D section
Commentary
A5
Court
B4
Do You Know
A3
Editorial
A4
Education
A9
Legal Notices
D3
Lifestyle
....A10
Looking Back
A3
Obituaries
....A11
Realty Transfers..
B4
Sports
...A6-8
TV Listings
B5
4 8 7 9
0 8 6 9 6
Clje Couder-CiniEs!
ipe m a ^^wam c^Coiise^
NOT IN A DREAM WORLD
Annual Spring Home
Improvement Section
included today
Check it out!!!
Person County Farmers' Market on schedule
to open Saturday April 30, on boulevard
By PHYLISS BOATWRIGHT
C-T Staff Writer
pboatwright@roxboro-courier.com
The Person County Farmers’ Market is on
schedule to open on Saturday, April 30.
Derek Day, county Cooperative Extension
Service director said Thursday that the market
building, located on North Madison Blvd. at Person
Industries, is complete and electricity had been
installed. He said signage should be up soon.
There was a meeting of the market board on
April 12, and Day said vendors who plan to sell their
products at the market were invited “as a way to
get to know each other before opening day.”
Carl Cantaluppi, area horticulture agent for the
Extension Service said 12 of the 16 vendors were
at this week’s meeting.
Several of those growers plan to offer “produce
boxes” when the market opens, said Cantaluppi.
He said the growers would each contribute their
produce to the three-quarter bushel box to make a
“variety pack” that customers will be able to special
order and pick up on Saturday mornings as soon
as the market opens.
He said plans are to gradually expand the pro
duce box trade so that the orders will be delivered
to buyers who live at Hyco and Mayo lakes.
Cantaluppi said he was “excited about this year”
at the farmers’ market and is looking forward to
the grand opening on Saturday, June 4, from 8 a.m.
until noon.
There will be activities that day, he said, as well
as cooking demonstrations featuring Eamily and
Consumer Education Agent Bess Hester-Whitt
and a restaurant owner. Cantaluppi will provide
live clarinet music for the opening and the Got to
Be NC Produce Cart will be on hand to offer give
aways and coupons promoting North Carolina
agriculture.
Representatives fromRAFI(RuralAdvancement
Foundation International), the organization that
provided a $30,000 grant to get the market up and
running, will be on hand also to formally present
the “big check” to market organizers.
The market will be open each Saturday from 8
See FARMERS’ back page