'Trusted' Neighbor Charged in Alleged Armed Robbery

Updated 3:15 p.m.

Gibbs allegedly took $80 from the victim's purse, her cell phone and a cordless phone from her Grove Circle home, according to the incident report attached to this article.

The blind victim, who said she recognized Gibbs' voice, said he asked to borrow money and she declined.

"I'm not asking, I'm demanding," he said; put a cold, round, circular object to the woman's side; and forced her to sit on the floor, she told officers, according to the report.

Original Report

A man suspected in the armed robbery of a disabled, blind woman, 58, was arrested when authorities caught up with him at the hospital being treated for a suspected drug overdose.

A Bartow County Sheriff's Office deputy cuffed John Anderson Gibbs, 42, of Grove Circle in Cartersville, in connection with the armed robbery reported yesterday afternoon.

Sheriff Clark Millsap said in a release that Wednesday about 4:43 p.m. the victim had a friend call 911 after she was robbed in her home.

"Deputies and investigators responded to the Grove Circle residence where they discovered that a 'trusted' neighbor, who assists the victim, had used an object to rob her of cash, a cell phone and a cordless home phone," the release says. "The victim is blind and was unable to idenitfy what object was used during the robbery, only that the offender pushed it against her side during the robbery."

The woman told authorities she tried to escape, but Gibbs pulled her back into the living room, where he searched her purse and stole her belongings, according to the press release. "After the offender left, the victim used another cordless phone in her house to call a friend who came to her home and called 911."

Later, a patrol deputy spotted Gibbs' truck at Cartersville Medical Center and found him inside being treated for a suspected drug overdose. Investigators charged him with armed robbery.

Gibbs is being treated at the hospital, but is in the custody of the sheriff's office and likely will face more charges related to the incident.

The victim was not injured and is staying with other family members.

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