75-year-old charged in March robbery

Hoover police have charged a 75-year-old Tennessee man in an armed robbery which occurred in March.

On March 29, a victim reported he was robbed at gunpoint at the Courtyard Marriott Hotel on Montgomery Highway. He was reportedly lured to the hotel on the pretense of a scheme in which he could exchange small denominations of cash for large denominations of cash. At the hotel, he was robbed by two older white men, according to a release from Hoover PD.

Hoover detectives heard of a similar crime which occurred in Perry, Georgia, according to the release, and that information led to a break in the case. Police connected with Perry detectives and found Donald Lewis Smith as a potential suspect.

Detectives from both agencies learned Lewis lived in Chattanooga, Tennessee and coordinated with the Chattanooga Police Department. Both agencies obtained warrants and Smith was arrested at his home on Wednesday, Aug. 24. He is in Hamilton County Jail awaiting extradition to the Jefferson County Jail.

Smith was charged with first degree robbery, and his bond was set at $150,000.

Detectives from Perry and Hoover are still working to identify the second robbery suspect.  Anyone with information about the case can contact Detective Daniel Lowe at 739-6792 or submit an anonymous tip to Crime Stoppers of Metro Alabama at 254-7777.