In the fall of 2017, the city of Meridian, Mississippi, was shaken by the violent and untimely death of a local business owner. Robert Joseph Trout, a 52-year-old male, was a well-known and liked member of the community. He was the proprietor of Frank's Drive-In, a sports bar on 5th Street that was a popular local gathering spot. In his personal life, he was a father to two children, Allison Rose Trout and Joseph 'Alan' Trout. He was a graduate of the University of Mississippi and was known by the nickname 'Fish' to his friends.
On the evening of Monday, October 16, 2017, what began as a typical night at Frank's Drive-In ended in tragedy. An armed robbery took a deadly turn when assailants entered the establishment. During the commission of the crime, Robert Trout was shot and killed. The violence of the encounter also resulted in injuries to three other individuals who were present at the bar. The incident was described by law enforcement as what appeared to be a planned robbery that had gone horribly wrong.
The investigation into the murder of Robert Trout quickly identified two main suspects who had fled the state. A month later, on November 21, 2017, a coordinated effort between the Gulf Coast Regional Fugitive Task Force in Mississippi and the Killeen Police Department led to the apprehension of the suspects in Killeen, Texas. Donshay Meundre Sanders, 20, and Dystiny Denice Davis, 25, were taken into custody without incident. They were subsequently served with warrants for capital murder and armed robbery. In addition to these charges, they also faced three counts of attempted murder in connection with the three other people who were shot and injured during the botched armed robbery. The arrest also led to the recovery of firearms, one of which was confirmed to have been stolen from the murder scene in Mississippi.
