A University of Georgia student is recovering back home in Richmond Hill after he was kidnapped, robbed and shot four times while delivering pizza last week, WTOC-TV in Savannah reported.
Trey Collins, 19, was released Monday morning from Athens Regional Medical Center, where he was being treated. His dad brought him home Monday afternoon, the television station reported.
Collins told WTOC-TV he was scheduled to make a delivery Thursday night, his second week on the job at Papa John’s Pizza.
“I went to the guy, and the next thing I knew he went to pull out money,” Collins said. “Instead he pulled out a gun and pointed it to my face, and I could feel another gun on the back of my head.”
The two men allegedly took the pizzas, Collins’ cell phone and $80 in cash, then forced Collins into the trunk of his Chevrolet Impala, and started driving, according to the Athens Banner-Herald.
Collins said he felt the car slow down after what felt like about 10 minutes.
“And they just decided to stop somewhere, turn around, and start opening fire into my backseat,” Collins told WTOC.
He was hit four times, but police said about 10 bullets pierced the backseat.
“Many of them landed inches away from me,” Collins told WTOC. “One bullet - the bullet that went through here - went through my arm, broke the bone, and then hit my rib, and my rib is bruised. So it hit it just hard enough to bruise it, but could [have] broken the skin and hit my heart. I was that close.”
Athens-Clarke County Police Capt. Mike Hunsinger told the Athens Banner-Herald the suspects may have been trying to kill Collins, the only witness to their alleged armed robbery.
“They intended for him not to be able to identify them,” Hunsinger said. “This is such a heinous case, it’s just pure evil.”
Athens police on Monday said they arrested 16-year-old Christopher Burnett and were still searching for a second suspect, 32-year-old Termedric Faust.
Burnett was identified as a suspect based on the cellphone used to call in the order to Papa John’s, according to the Athens Banner-Herald.
Investigators took the teen in for questioning Friday afternoon and by that night were able to develop sufficient information to charge Burnett and obtain warrants for his alleged accomplice, Faust.
Burnett was charged as an adult on suspicion of armed robbery, kidnapping and aggravated assault.
Faust, a convicted felon according to the Banner-Herald, was paroled from prison in June, and police on Tuesday said they were enlisting the assistance of the U.S. Marshals Service in tracking him down.
Police are also offering a reward of up to $1,000 to anyone who has information that leads to Faust’s capture.
Anyone with information should call Det. Nate Hayes at 706-613-3888, ext. 681 or Lt. Mike Tyndell at 706-613-3888, ext. 372.
As for Collins, two bullets wedged in his body serve as physical reminders of the incident. Doctors told the teenager, removing the bullets would prove to be too dangerous, according to WTOC.
Doctors also said it will take several weeks for Collins to fully heal and he will likely have to medically withdraw from classes at UGA this semester and return in the fall.
“I’m definitely going to look at the world a little bit differently, be more aware; not just walk through life and not appreciate things,” Collins told WTOC. “I would take every moment that I had as a blessing.”
About the Author
