MACON, Ga. — Two men were sentenced for their roles in the robbery and murder of a clerk at a Macon food store in 2018, according to a release from District Attorney Anita Howard.
21-year-old Arie Callaway was sentenced today to two consecutive life sentences for armed robbery, kidnapping and murder in the shooting death of Alpeshkumar Prajapati at the Gulf Food Store on Napier Avenue
Video evidence showed 21-year-old Jeremy Jerome Kendrick Jr. waited by the front door of the store for Prajapati, who had already given the two the cash from the store, and took him to a back room where Callaway shot and killed him.
Callaway was found guilty after a trial in July 2021. Kendrick went on trial in July 2022 which resulted in a hung jury. Jury selection for his second trial was about to begin when Kendrick plead guilty to armed robbery and aggravated assault.
Kendrick was sentenced to 30 years and will spend the first 10 years without the possibility of parole.
A third suspect, Vernon Ashley, is still awaiting trial.
“The immigrant population in Macon is too often seen as an easy target,” Anita Howard said “The life of Alpeshkumar Prajapati mattered, and his death was senseless. We hope today’s developments provide a measure of justice to his loved ones.”