ASHLEY – An Indianapolis man and a Michigan woman are behind bars in the DeKalb County Jail after an early morning robbery at the Ashley Deli on State Road 54.
The couple was alleged to have brandished a handgun towards a gas station employee before fleeing the business in their vehicle.
Indiana State Troopers were able to apprehend the couple a short time later at another gas station in Auburn.
The incident began shortly after 7:30 a.m. Friday morning, as an Indiana pulled into the Ashley Deli to fill up his gas tank. The trooper noticed a white Toyota passenger car leaving the lot “in a hurry” as he pulled in, with a gas station employee close behind waving to get the trooper’s attention, then reporting what had just occurred.
The timing was fortunate, as it allowed for a quick dispatch of information to attempt to locate the suspect’s vehicle. Within minutes of the information being communicated, a second trooper spotted a white Toyota passenger car matching the vehicle and suspects descriptions traveling south on I-69 near the State Road 8 Auburn exit. The trooper was able to track the vehicle to a Lt. Culler was able to a second gas station just off the State Road8 / I-69 exit. Once backup officers from both ISP and the Auburn Police Department arrived, officers were then able to move in and detain the couple without incident.
The suspects were identified as 33-year-old Dustin Wayne Austin, of Indianapolis, and 33-year-old Amanda Evelyn Jessup, of Homer, Michigan.
Officers learned Austin was wanted on an outstanding arrest warrant out of Johnson County, IN. A handgun and drug paraphernalia were recovered in the couple’s vehicle.
Both Austin and Jessup were transported to the DeKalb County jail where they were incarcerated on charges unrelated to the actions at the Ashley Deli.
An active investigation into the events that took place at the Ashley Deli remains ongoing. Once complete, that report will be turned to the DeKalb County Prosecutor for review and determination of criminal charges to be filed at a later date.
Assisting in this investigation were several troopers from the Fort Wayne Post, the Auburn PD, Ashley PD, DeKalb County Sheriff’s Department, and Jeff’s Towing.
