Carletos Alexander Garcia, 18, and Brandon Luers, 20, are facing aggravated robbery and kidnapping charges, according to the Montgomery County Common Pleas Court.
Garcia pleaded not guilty and the court entered a not guilty plea of behalf of Luers.
If they make bond, they will be released and placed on the court’s electronic home detention program.
A status conference and scheduling hearing were scheduled for Aug. 22 and Aug. 29 respectively for the suspects.
Bail was set at $500,000 for both suspects on July 15 in Dayton Municipal Court, before the case was bound over to common pleas court.
An armed robbery was reported July 7 just before 10 p.m. at Elsa’s Mexican Restaurant, 3618 Linden Ave., Dayton.
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A worker told News Center 7 that he was taking out trash when he felt a gun against his head and a group of men demanded money.
“One suspect, later identified as Brandon Luers, went into the office and pointed a handgun at the manager and began taking money from the day’s cash drawers and safe,” said a court affidavit.
The other two suspects, which included Garcia, reportedly gathered the restaurant’s employees and forced them at gunpoint into the back of the store.
One suspect fired shots in the employees’ direction and the group then left in a white Chevrolet Equinox stolen earlier that day, according to court affidavits.
On July 12, Garcia, Luers and a juvenile crashed the SUV just after 1 p.m. on Rogge Street, according to a police report.
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All three reportedly ran from the vehicle, but were eventually caught by police.
University officials sounded emergency sirens on campus during the incident and alerted campus shortly after the crash was reported.
The third suspect in the case is a juvenile, according to police records.
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