A Spartanburg restaurant owner who claimed he was assaulted and robbed inside his own eatery will serve six months in prison and 24 months of probation.
Marion Edward "Tracy" Haynes, 35, entered an Alford plea in Spartanburg County Circuit Court Thursday morning. An Alford plea means he doesn't admit guilt but recognizes that the prosecution has evidence that could lead to a conviction.
Haynes was the co-owner of Roots Deep South Eats on Fernwood Glendale Road. The restaurant opened in December 2014, but was reportedly vandalized on Feb. 17, 2015. The place appeared to have been ransacked, expletives were etched into the walls and gas lines were cut.
The incident was under investigation when, four days later, Haynes, who uses a wheelchair, reported he was inside the restaurant when two masked men with foreign accents mugged him, stripped off his clothing and tried to set the place on fire.
Haynes was questioned extensively and later confessed to police that he had staged the assault and was responsible for setting the fires, said Timi Poulos, who prosecuted the case.