Authorities have arrested a man they say is responsible for robbing two Johnston County businesses this month.
Dennis Ray Horne, 45, of Stedman, NC is accused of robbing the Holiday Inn Express at 105 Leone Court near the I-40 / NC42 interchange on August 1st. Horne allegedly approached the hotel clerk and demanded money. During the robbery he told the clerk he was “sorry but he had to.” He fled in a white Ford F-250 truck.
Just after midnight on August 9th, Horne walked into the Han-Dee Hugo convenience store at 446 Highway 70 East in Selma and told the clerk, “I hate to do this to you, but I need you to give me the cash out of the cash register.” While the clerk was complying, the suspect said, “Don’t do anything crazy.” As he left he told the clerk, “Thank you.” He fled in a gray Ford Focus.
Four Oaks Police located the getaway vehicle on Interstate 95 southbound a few minutes later. Police stopped the car near Benson and detained Horne who was later identified by the clerk as the suspect. Selma Police charged Horne with common law robbery.
Johnston County deputies, who were already investigating the Holiday Inn robbery, began looking at Horne as a possible suspect. As part of their investigation, they located the getaway truck from the Aug. 1st robbery at his home in Cumberland County. He was subsequently charged with the crime.
Selma Police said during questioning Horne claimed that he was struggling financially and his mother was sick. He said he threw the t-shirt and hat he wore during the Selma robbery out the window while traveling on Interstate 95 before he was pulled over.
An undisclosed amount of money was taken during each holdup. The money from the Selma convenience store robbery was recovered.
No weapon was displayed in the holdups, but was reportedly implied during the Holiday Inn robbery.
