Suspects in pawn shop gunfight charged in armed robbery at Columbus Denny’s

Two of the men who were arrested in the July 12 pawn shop robbery where 50 shots were fired have been charged in the armed robbery that occurred weeks before at the Denny’s on Macon Road.

Jamal Head, 23, and Marquis Johnson, 20, face four counts of attempted armed robbery, four counts of armed robbery, one count of possession of a firearm during the commission of a crime and one count of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon.

They were booked into the Muscogee County Jail for a 2 p.m. Thursday hearing in Columbus Recorder’s Court.

Columbus police were called to the Denny’s at 3239 Macon Road around 2:25 a.m. June 29 to investigate an armed robbery. Few details about the incident have been released, but a report indicates that at least seven people were at the business at the time.

No injuries were mentioned in the police report.

Weeks later, authorities were called to the Village Pawn Shop at 937 Fort Benning Road around 11 a.m. July 12 to investigate an armed robbery.

Detective Brad Hall said Quantavius Pigler, 21, and Johnson entered the business armed with a handgun and rifle. They allegedly robbed the store and headed out the door with cash.

An employee pulled out a gun and began shooting at the suspects as they were leaving. A gunfight between the employee and suspects followed. More than 50 shots were fired, with the robbers allegedly shooting at least 30 times.

No one was harmed.

Hall said the suspects left in a black Toyota Rav4 that was waiting in the parking lot. Head was behind the wheel, according to police.

An officer who wasn’t dressed in uniform stopped the men in the 200 block of 23rd Avenue. The suspects allegedly hid in the residence of Pigler’s mother, leading to a standoff with officers from various divisions of the police department outside of the home.

Detective Brad Hall said they knocked on the door and demanded entrance. He said Veronica Pigler, the 59-year-old mother of one of the robbery suspect’s, answered the front door but wouldn’t allow law enforcement inside.

She said she was the only one in the house and told them to leave. She also said the Rav4 in her yard had been there all morning, Hall testified.

Hall said he saw all three suspects leave the residence through the back door, and he demanded them to stop. He said two of them fled into the woods, but Pigler complied.

Quantavius Pigler, Head and Johnson were arrested on the scene and charged with charged with count of armed robbery, two counts of aggravated assault and one count of possession of a firearm during the commission of a crime.

Veronica Pigler was taken into custody on obstruction and false information charges, but she was released on bond prior to her preliminary hearing.

The men appeared in Recorder’s Court Friday and pleaded not guilty to their charges.

Johnson and Head have also been charged in other armed robberies.

This story was originally published July 19, 2017 at 11:16 AM with the headline "Suspects in pawn shop gunfight charged in armed robbery at Columbus Denny’s."