LAPORTE | A trail of money dropped by an alleged LaPorte liquor store robber practically led police right to him.
That was some of the new information made available following Friday's arraignment of Terry West Jr. in LaPorte Circuit Court on a Class B felony robbery, Class B felony possession of a controlled substance and other felony counts.
West, 37, was ordered held on $10,000 cash bond and was scheduled to have his case heard by a jury April 8 after requesting a speedy trial.
West is accused in the Jan. 23 hold-up at the Bottle Shop, 1212 Lincolnway.
According to court documents, the robber fled with a paper bag containing $736 in stolen money.
Court documents state that police came across money in a tree, on a lawn and underneath a car on the north side of Jefferson Avenue a block south of the liquor store.
The trail led to another bill a short distance away outside an apartment where a resident told police that West had been staying there for about the past week.
Seized during a search of the home were a blue coat and other clothing, along with a BB handgun — all of which were used in the hold-up, police said.
A tip led investigators to Knight's Inn outside Michigan City, where West was found in possession of 6 grams of heroin and other drugs, according to court documents.
West reportedly told police he spent the stolen money in Chicago on heroin.
In 2009, West was given a five-year sentence for burglary that involved the theft of two safes containing an undisclosed amount of cash from Lady Rose Bar on LaPorte's east side.
West previously told the court he had been addicted for heroin for years.
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