Three Charged in String of Dollar General Burglaries

Holley

Hodum

Caroenter

Cooperation among several law enforcement agencies may have solved a year-long string of burglaries of Dollar General stores in Union, Lee and Pontotoc counties.

Investigators say they have charged 46-year-old Marty Holley of Rienzi, 27-year-old John Hodum of Corinth and 46-year-old Jerry Carpenter of Booneville. They are accused of breaking into stores in each county and stealing cash and other items from safes. Investigators say they attached large straps to the safes and yanked them out of the floor. At the store in Myrtle in Union County, the strap broke and they fled.

The one in Lee County was in the Pratts community.

They also are accused of at least one break-in in McNairy County and investigators are searching the region for other stores that might have been victims. Law enforcement agencies say they compared notes, video, and other evidence to help connect the dots among the three, who are described as friends who began the spree about a year ago.

Detectives got a break when one of the suspects was arrested in McNairy County, Tennessee on an unrelated charge. He led them to the other two.