Case dismissed against suspect in 2009 jewelry-store robbery

The case against a woman suspected of participating in a 2009 jewelry-store robbery was dismissed Tuesday, but her three co-defendants are due in court next month on felony charges.

Keyessence Fountain had been charged in connection with an armed robbery Sept. 23, 2009, at Jayson Jewelers, 97 N. Kingshighway.

The other three defendants -- Kevin Stitt of Nashville, Tenn.; Darryl House of Memphis, Tenn.; and Charla Hubbard-Dinkins of Memphis -- are set to appear in court Oct. 9 on charges of first-degree robbery and armed criminal action in connection with the case.

House's case is set for a jury trial Oct. 9, while the others are scheduled for case reviews. All three defendants are set to appear before Judge Joe Satterfield.

Assistant prosecuting attorney Angel Woodruff confirmed Fountain had been a defendant in the case but declined to comment on the reason for the dismissal.

Fountain had been scheduled for a preliminary hearing Tuesday afternoon before Judge Gary Kamp. The hearing was canceled when the case was dismissed, and all details about the case were removed from online court records.

In May 2012, DNA evidence connected Stitt to the robbery, according to a probable-cause statement filed by Sgt. Don Perry of the Cape Girardeau Police Department.

Stitt admitted he and three other people -- a man and two women -- came from Memphis to Cape Girardeau to rob a jewelry store, Perry wrote.

Stitt said he and one of the women went into the store and asked to look at wedding rings until the other man came into the store, at which point Stitt handcuffed the clerk, duct-taped her eyes shut and put her in a closet, Perry wrote.

DNA collected from the handcuffs matched that of Stitt, who was in custody in Nashville at the time on unrelated charges.

Court records show Hubbard-Dinkins and House were charged after Stitt identified them from a photo lineup police obtained from the Shelby County, Tenn., Sheriff's Department.

Shelby County authorities based the lineup on information Stitt provided about his companions, court records show.

House's name and driver's license number appeared on a receipt from the Town House Inn that showed he checked in before the robbery and checked out the day of the robbery, court records show.

epriddy@semissourian.com

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Pertinent address:

97 N. Kingshighway, Cape Girardeau, MO

100 Court St., Jackson, MO