Two face charges in Knoxville robbery

By Don Jacobs knoxnews.com

 

KNOXVILLE — Authorities arrested two men on robbery charges within 30 minutes of a heist in a Walmart parking lot in West Knoxville.

Travis Cozart, 37, of Candle Nook Lane in Lenoir City was being held this morning in a Knox County jail in lieu of $36,000 bond on charges of robbery, driving on a revoked license, no proof of insurance and failure to obey a stop sign.

Gary Hampton, 22, of Riverbend Drive in Loudon faces a charge of robbery. He was being held this morning in jail on a $20,000 bond.

Police were alerted to the robbery about 3:32 a.m. Sunday that occurred in the parking lot of the Walmart store, 10900 Parkside Drive, according to Knoxville Police Department spokesman Darrell DeBusk. That's when a man came up behind a woman and grabbed her wallet as she prepared to enter her vehicle.

A witness and the victim saw the robber run toward Parkside Drive and get into an older model gold car.

Within 30 minutes of the report, officers with the Knox County Sheriff's Office saw the suspect's car at Glade Drive and Plumb Creek Drive, which is just off Parkside Drive and less than a mile from the Wal Mart. The officers stopped the car and discovered property belonging to the victim, DeBusk said.

The victim, DeBusk said, was able to identify Hampton as the man who stole her wallet. Cozart was driving the vehicle.