Grand jury takes action in last week's robbery/standoff case

Syracuse, NY - An Onondaga County grand jury has voted to indict two Syracuse men in connection with an armed robbery that sparked a standoff with police and a shutdown of several blocks of South Avenue last week. Aaron Jackson, 20, of 146 Wolf St., and Jermain Grimes, 31, of 1202 South Ave., are accused of participating together to...

View full sizeDennis Nett / The Post-StandardJermain Grimes, in yellow shirt, has been charged with robbery in connection with the standoff with Syracuse police Tuesday at Omanii's Lemonade Heaven.

Syracuse, NY - An Onondaga County grand jury has voted to indict two Syracuse men in connection with an armed robbery that sparked a standoff with police and a shutdown of several blocks of South Avenue last week.

Aaron Jackson, 20, of 146 Wolf St., and Jermain Grimes, 31, of 1202 South Ave., are accused of participating together to rob three customers at Omanii's Lemonade Heaven at 1206 South Ave. Aug. 17.

Jackson is accused of firing a shot at Syracuse police Officer John "Jerry" Mulherin when Mulherin responded to the scene after a passerby tipped him off to the robbery taking place inside the restaurant. Mulherin returned fire and Jackson holed up inside the building -- which contains numerous apartments -- for several hours with police sealing off the neighborhood.

Both Jackson and Grimes were scheduled to be in Syracuse City Court today for preliminary hearings in the case. But those hearings did not have to be held because the District Attorney's Office got the grand jury to vote to indict the defendants in advance of the hearings.

Details of charges won't be known until indictments are formally reported out by the grand jury.

Both men were charged last week with three counts of first-degree robbery and second-degree criminal possession of a weapon. Jackson was also charged with attempted first-degree murder and first-degree criminal use of a firearm for allegedly shooting at Mulherin.

Jackson and Grimes both are being held in the Justice Center jail without bail.

» Read our previous coverage of the armed standoff at Omanii's Lemonade Heaven