Play N Trade Owner Recovers As Woodstock Hunts Alleged Robbers

Sarah Hames was scheduled to come to work at Play N Trade at 12:30 p.m. Sunday.

Hames, who has been working at the store for a little over a year, had arrived before noon at the shopping center where Play N Trade resides so she could grab lunch at Peace Love and Pizza before she started her shift.

Instead of embarking on what she thought would be a routine day at the video store, she stepped onto a scene of chaos.

"Next thing I know, I see my boss on fire outside the store," Hames recalled. 

Hames' boss, Play N Trade owner owner Troy Brazelton, suffered second- and third-degree burns on his extremities in a fire set at the scene of an armed robbery that's been the talk of Towne Lake since Sunday afternoon. 

The Woodstock Police Department continues to burn the midnight oil in an effort to solve the case that not only landed the store's owner in the hospital, but has potentially gutted the business's storefront.  

The agency is in the midst of reviewing surveillance cameras at Play N Trade to determine who the suspects are in the crime, said spokeswoman Brittany Duncan.

"At this time, detectives are currently working the case diligently, following up on leads, so as to identify the person (or) persons responsible," she said. 

Woodstock police and fire units responded to a possible armed robbery call just before 11:30 a.m. Sunday at the business, located at 2990 Eagle Drive. 

Once first responders arrived into the scene, they discovered a structure fire inside the store.  

Woodstock police said they believe between three and four suspects entered the store and are still on the loose. 

Along with the fire and water damage at Play N Trade, Woodstock Fire Chief Dave Soumas said both adjacent units, which house Choi Kwang Do and Styl'N Hair Salon, also suffered water damage due to the sprinkler system that was activated at the time of the fire. 

Soumas also said the department is still investigating how the fire was started. 

"We have taken samples into evidence to determine if an accelerant was used," he added.  

Brazelton was transported to Grady Memorial Hospital's Burn Unit with second-degree burns on his legs and third-degree burns on one hand and an arm, his daughter Elizabeth Brazelton said on her Facebook page.

Brazelton on Monday said her father, who is in "a lot of pain," had skin removed on his injured hand.

"According to the doctor, he will need to have surgery so he may be here for up to a week," she added. "Again, thank you all for the support and I will post if I know anything else."

Hames, who called her boss a "hero," said she believes her boss arrived onto the scene to discover his business ablaze. She noted he immediately ran inside to check on his employees. 

"He was asking if we were all right," she said. "He saw the fire and thought of everyone who was supposed to be in there." 

For David DeSantis, owner of Peace Love and Pizza, the scene that unfolded on Sunday was something he thought he'd never see in Towne Lake. 

DeSantis, who opened his business in the same shopping center nearly a month ago, said he initially was puzzled why Woodstock officers rolled up to the shopping center with rifles drawn. 

"We were all in shock," he said of their initial reaction. "It was obvious that something bad was happening."

DeSantis said he'd just opened for business on Sunday and already had two customers, so his first priority was to make sure they were safe. Once things begin to settle down, DeSantis said he and his customers were surprised that something like that could happen in Towne Lake. 

"We are in a good area, so that is the part that’s so shocking," he said, noting Play N Trade's space appears to be a total loss. 

DeSantis said he and others are brainstorming ways they can help Brazelton recover from his injury and save his business. Furthermore, he noted he's also thinking how he and his neighbors could minimize any profits loss that could occur due to the crime.

That, he said, will take the work of loyal customers who he hopes will continue to patronize those businesses owned by people who are also their friends and neighbors. 

"We need Towne Lake as a community to support us and help our businesses recover from something like this," he said. 

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