Police arrest man after alleged toy gun robbery

A Fairfield man was arrested Friday evening after using a toy weapon to rob a Hamilton restaurant.

Hamilton police were called at 7:56 p.m. to the Subway restaurant, 2308 Dixie Highway, for an armed robbery call.

Police said that Nicholas Sparks, 31, a resident of the Cove Motel, allegedly had ridden a bicycle after using a plastic toy weapon that appeared to be real. Using information from witnesses, Sparks was found in a room with an unidentified woman and was arrested at 8:18 p.m., about 22 minutes after the alleged robbery. In the room that Sparks was in, police found the weapon displayed and the amount of cash that was taken from the restaurant.

Police charged Sparks with aggravated robbery and theft, according to the booking report at the Butler County Jail. Sparks was also wanted on a number of outstanding warrants issued by Hamilton Municipal Court. According to the court’s online records, Sparks has been arrested on other charges going back to 1999.

Sparks is being held without bond in the Butler County Jail and is slated for arraignment on the charges Monday morning in Hamilton Municipal Court.

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About the Author

Ed Richter

Ed Richter has been a working journalist for 38 years, with the last 34 years working in various capacities covering Butler and Warren counties as a reporter and an editor. Richter covers local news and governments in Warren County focusing on Springboro, Lebanon, Franklin, Carlisle and Waynesville.