Edwards man indicted on assault, robbery charges

By DARREN ANKROM
TIMES STAFF WRITER

FRIDAY, JULY 27, 2012

ARTICLE OPTIONS

A A

CANTON — An Edwards man accused of assaulting a Fowler “head shop” employee and stealing items from the store was indicted by a St. Lawrence County grand jury on Thursday.

Codey A. Royce, 22, of 28 Ames Road, was charged with second-degree assault and second-degree robbery in connection with the incident, which was in early July.

Mr. Royce allegedly was denied when he tried to purchase roughly $100 worth of items with a personal check July 2 at the now-closed Uncle Tom’s Headshop, 1435 County Route 24. The store did not accept checks.

He is accused of returning with a weapon shortly before 10:30 p.m. and was captured on the shop’s security video demanding the items he had tried to buy earlier from employee Thomas Mashaw, 23, who had kept them aside. When Mr. Mashaw refused to give him the items, Mr. Royce hit him in the head, the right hand and left forearm with a wooden stick, according to state police.

According to the store’s owner, who is the victim’s father and also named Thomas Mashaw, the shop permanently closed after the incident because it “just wasn’t worth it.”

The items sought by Mr. Royce were bath salts and synthetic marijuana, which he discarded in the area, troopers said.

President Barack Obama banned the sale, production and possession of more than two dozen common bath salt drugs earlier this month. The sale of synthetic marijuana, including products such as Spice and K2, was banned throughout New York state in March.

Violence struck another store, Tebb’s Headshop in Watertown, on Tuesday morning.

Daniel H. Avery, 49, of 16896 Ives Street Road Extension, is accused of wielding a baseball bat and causing $669 in damage to the shop, according to Watertown police.

Mr. Avery told police that his son, Justin, 24, was hospitalized Monday night after using bath salts purchased at the store.