TEXARKANA -- An Austin, Texas, man accused of getting $5,000 from a Texarkana nightclub by pretending to be musician Ted Nugent's booking agent is facing criminal charges in Miller County.
Robert James Devine, 64, persuaded management at Shooter's Sports Bar via email and cellphone that he could arrange a date for Nugent to entertain in Texarkana during the summer of 2014 under a contract with Devine's business, Maximus Entertainment, according to a probable cause affidavit.
Staff members at the bar learned that Nugent's tour ended in mid-August 2014 and no plans for more performances existed, authorities said. Shooter's management contacted Texarkana police in September 2014 to report the matter after Devine didn't respond to demands for the $5,000 to be refunded.
About a month after detective Tye Whatley took the report from Shooter's personnel, he was contacted by a member of the Travis County, Texas, district attorney's office with information about the case. The Travis County investigator told Whatley that Devine had cashed the check from Shooter's at a check cashing store in Austin in July 2014 and used some of the money to buy a used Mercury Villager, authorities said.
Last year, Devine was sentenced to seven concurrent 10-year terms for robbery in Travis County. He faces charges of theft of property and unlawful acts involving electronic mail in Arkansas. Devine has pleaded innocent.
Metro on 03/24/2017