THOMASVILLE, GA (WALB) - A man who tied up and robbed a Thomasville real estate agent as part of a multi-state crime spree finds out his punishment here.
49-year old Jaime Diaz spent the last five years in a Louisiana prison.
Wednesday in Thomas County, he pleaded guilty to robbery and assault for attacking now 63-year old Lorraine Jackson.
In October 2007, Jaime Diaz told real estate agent Lorraine Jackson he was interested in buying this home on Pavo Road.
"He robbed her. Took her credit cards, money, vehicle. Tied her up and left her in one of the houses that were shown," said GBI Special Agent Steve Turner.
Jackson was a real estate agent at Remax of Thomasville, at the time of her attack.
"When that happened it was extremely scary. The man was so believable. There were very few red flags. We had no red flags in the beginning," said Remax of Thomasville owner Julie Bryan.
Bryan says after this incident, her office put several new safety measures in place. "When we have someone come in and an agent is going to go out with them, and the agent does not know them, the receptionist asks for their drivers license and we make a copy."
"The best precautionary thing to do at least if you can't have somebody else with you, have someone else know where you're going and when you're supposed to be there. That way if you don't come back when you should, they'll know where to start looking for you," said Turner.
Turner says Diaz did not stay in Thomasville after the attack. "He left out of here. Went down to Florida. Over to Alabama, Mississippi, where he also changed cars, stole another car. Went to Slidell, Louisiana and there he got caught."
Bryan says her office now has code words, only those working in that office know.
And if an agent calls the receptionist mentioning one of those words, she knows that agent is in trouble.
Diaz was sentenced to 10 years in prison for the Thomasville crimes.
Before he begins that sentence, he'll face charges including attempted kidnapping and motor vehicle theft in Alabama and Mississippi.
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Julie Bryan
Special Agent Steve Turner
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