Chilton County Sheriff’s Deputies arrested a 19-year-old Verbena man Tuesday night for the robbery of a south Chilton County convenience store, less than 10 hours after the incident.

Timothy Jake Wells Jr., who was also a suspect in the July 1 burglary of Action Motorsports in Clanton, is facing first degree robbery charges. Wells had been out on bond, officials said.

The suspect allegedly entered Ye Olde General Store at the corner of county roads 59 and 24 at approximately 10 a.m. Tuesday. He was armed with a shotgun and wearing a blue hood. After demanding money from the clerk, the suspect took about $200 in cash and fled in a brown, four-door Honda Accord, according to officials.

Chief Deputy Shane Mayfield said Wells lived within two miles of the store and that physical evidence links him to the robbery.

“It’s an escalation from burglary to armed robbery, and he needs to be in jail,” Mayfield said.

Mayfield added that the department is investigating burglaries in the area. While the Clanton Police Department assisted with the robbery case, there is no evidence to support a connection between Tuesday’s crime and any of the recent robberies around I-65 Exit 205 in south Clanton.

“They have all been in the confines of the city so far,” Mayfield said. “We don’t know if there’s going to be a connection.”

Sheriff Kevin Davis thanked all who assisted in the case.

“It was outstanding police work between the Chilton County Sheriff’s Department and Clanton Police,” he said. “It goes to show when law enforcement officers come together with one goal in mind, and the goal today was to remove this bad guy from the streets of Chilton County.”