SUPERIOR COURT
Bond was denied a Jones County man charged with kidnapping and aggravated assault in an incident that took place in November.
Aaron Goolsby was in superior court April 6 seeking a bond. At the conclusion of the bond hearing, Superior Court Judge Terry Massey denied him bond, citing that the defendant poses a significant threat or danger to another person or the community.
Assistant District Attorney Cara Fiore represented the state, and Goolsby was represented by Defense Attorney Melvin Raines. In addition to the attorneys, the alleged victim in the case was in the courtroom and asked to speak at the hearing.
Raines told the court that his client lives in Gray with his grandmother and has no criminal history. He said he is not a risk to flee or reoffend. The attorney acknowledged that the charges were serious but said his client was a good candidate for bond and would agree to wear an ankle monitor.
Fiore said the victim was at a gas station when he came in contact with the defendant, who was having car problems.
“The victim offered to help and followed him home. Goolsby asked him for a ride the next day, and when he arrived, he held him against his will, hit him and accused him of taking a backpack,” she said.
The prosecutor said the victim was held at gunpoint but was eventually able to get away.
During the victim’s testimony at the hearing, he told the court that he has fear every day because of what happened to him at the hands of the defendant.
Fiore said Goolsby’s codefendant the case had been released from custody due to mental issues.
“I understand he has no criminal history, but this was a very violent assault,” she stated.
The prosecutor said the state believes the backpack the victim was accused of stealing contained drugs.
Goolsby was arrested Jan. 4 and charged with aggravated assault and kidnapping. He and codefendant Joshua Ballard were indicted by a Jones County Grand Jury on the charges Feb. 6.
The crime
The offense for which the two men are charged was reported to Jones County Sheriff’s Office Sgt. David Little Nov. 4. In his incident report, Little said he met with the complainant on Joycliff Road, and he was also interviewed at the sheriff’s office.
In an interview following the indictment, Simmons said the victim was from Atlanta, and he encountered Ballard and Goolsby Nov. 3 in Macon. The investigator said the suspects were having a problem with their vehicle, and the victim offered to help.
After he got the car running, Ballard and Goolsby invited the victim to Jones County where they hung out at a mobile home park on Joycliff Road. Simmons said when the victim decided to go home, he gave the suspects his name and phone number and gave a female who was at the residence a ride home.
The investigator said when he dropped her off, the female gave the victim an extra phone so she could get in touch with him.
Simmons said the suspects called the complainant the next day. The suspects told him the car was not running again and asked him to come and give them a ride. The investigator said the victim told him that, when he arrived at the mobile home park, he was hit in the head with a pistol and held at gunpoint.
The victim told Simmons he jumped out the window and tried to escape, but they caught him.
He said he had no idea why he was being held until they started asking him about a bookbag. Simmons said it appears that the female passenger had taken the bookbag, and when the suspects figured that out, the victim was allowed to leave.
The investigator estimated that the complainant had been held by the suspects for at least 12 hours. The complainant called the JCSO and met with Little, who later took him to the mobile home park in an attempt to identify the suspects.
The victim was able to give a description of the suspects but was unsure of first names. Simmons said Little was able to find the female passenger who had given the victim the phone. He said she provided more information about the offenders.
The investigator said using that information, he was able to put together a photo array of possible suspects and the complainant picked out Goolsby as one of the offenders.
