The father of a Bayfield man who was arrested Saturday in connection with an armed robbery of a medical marijuana dispensary in Durango was arrested Monday on suspicion of being an accomplice.
Joe Riley Griffith, 44, posed as a customer while his son, Logan Griffith, 19, used a semi-automatic handgun to rob the Rocky Mountain High dispensary at 48 East Animas Road (County Road 250), said Lt. Darrell Robertson, with the Durango Police Department.
“Joseph Griffith was initially believed to be a victim of the robbery,” Robertson said. “However, investigation by detectives determined that Joseph Griffith was complicit in the offense along with his son, Logan Griffith.”
The son is suspected of entering the business about 6:30 p.m. wearing a dark hoodie and a ski mask. He carried a semi-automatic handgun and ordered an employee to open a safe and cash register, police said. He used duct tape and zip ties to bind two employes and a “customer,” who actually was his father.
The son fled on foot but was found by police less than an hour later near Holly Avenue and 32nd Street in Durango. Police said he was in possession of items consistent with the evidence from the crime, including a ski mask, loaded semi-automatic handgun and a backpack containing cash and packages of marijuana. When police tried to arrest him, Logan Griffith resisted, and officers used a stun gun on him, according to a police news release. After a brief tussle, they were able to restrain him.
He made off with $2,700 in cash and a “copious” amount of packaged marijuana, Robertson said.
He was being held Monday morning in La Plata County jail on suspicion of aggravated robbery of a controlled substance, assault on a police officer, resisting arrest and obstructing police. He was released Monday afternoon on a personal recognizance bond, meaning he doesn’t pay anything unless he fails to show up for future court hearings or if he violates terms of his release.
District Attorney Todd Risberg said he disagrees with La Plata County Judge Martha Minot’s decision to reduce a $50,000 bail to a personal recognizance bond, saying Logan Griffith wore a hoodie, ski mask, committed an armed robbery, tied victims up and fought with police.
“That person presents a danger to the community,” Risberg said. “Apparently, Judge Minot disagrees.”
Efforts to reach Minot for comment Monday evening were unsuccessful.
The father, who stuck around to talk to police after the crime, was arrested about 9:30 a.m. Monday at his home in Gem Village. He was being held Monday on $50,000 bail.
Both men are former employees at The Durango Herald, where they provided maintenance help.
Rocky Mountain Marijuana Dispensary owns eight marijuana dispensaries throughout Colorado, including four in Denver and stores in Carbondale, Edwards and Montrose, in addition to the business in Durango. It also does business under the names Cannabis Station and Colomed.
The dispensary was closed Sunday, but it had reopened for business Monday.
An employee who answered the phone Monday said Joe Griffith was a regular customer.
The dispensary is equipped with security cameras that were operational at the time of the robbery. None of the employees is suspected of having any involvement in the robbery, Robertson said.
It was at least the second time a Durango dispensary has been robbed. In August 2014, two 17-year-olds from Corsicana, Texas, robbed Animas Herbal-Wellness Center on Camino del Rio, using pepper spray.
Anyone with additional information about Saturday’s incident is asked to call detectives Burke Baldwin or Josh Newman at 375-4734.
shane@durangoherald.com
