In the early morning hours of Monday, July 29, the Dayton Police Department, assisted by the Liberty County Special Response Team [SRT] executed a search warrant for a residence located on CR 48614. A felony arrest warrant was also in hand for a subject believed to be at that residence.
These warrants were the result of an investigation by Dayton Police Department detectives of an Aggravated Robbery of the Stripes Fuel station located in the 800 block of US 90 which occurred on May 30, 2019, where three armed individuals entered the store and stole an undisclosed amount of cash and cigarettes.
The information gathered during the investigation led detectives to seek search warrants for the home and the suspected vehicle used in the offense, as well as an arrest warrant for a suspect.
During the search of the residence, items and evidence of the Aggravated Robbery were discovered and seized, which included a firearm believed to have been used in the offense.
At approximately 6 a.m. Monday, July 29, Gregorio Tapia, 18, of Dayton, was taken into custody on the felony warrant for the offense of Aggravated Robbery, a first-degree felony. If found guilty, Tapia could face 5 to 99 years in prison and up to a $10,000 fine.
The investigation is ongoing as there are still two more individuals who were involved in this offense who have not yet been located or arrested. Future arrests are pending and the names of the two other individuals will be released when appropriate.
“Dayton PD is very appreciative to have had the Liberty County SRT with us for the execution of these warrants,” said Police Chief Robert Vine. “They are an asset to the county and to local law enforcement agencies not large enough to have a response team of their own for incidents like this.”
The team was brought in for this particular incident due to the aggravated nature of the original offense and the fact weapons were expected to be in the home.
The Liberty County SRT was assisted by the East Montgomery County Strategic Response Team.
The search warrants were signed by Judge Cain with the 253rd District and the arrest warrant for Tapia was signed by Dayton Municipal Court Judge Alan Conner.