A night of chaos has left eight businesses along Vineville Avenue in Macon heavily damaged after a vandalism. It has left business owners like Aaron Gray devastated

MACON, Ga. — A Macon man is in jail after a string of smash-and-grab burglaries left eight businesses damaged early Saturday. 

Video footage captured 29-year-old Justin Sellers smashing the windows of several stores along Vineville Avenue, leaving business owners like Aaron Gray devastated.

Gray, who owns three of the eight affected businesses, is now left to pick up the pieces and make sense of the destruction. 

He shared video of the crime happening in real time, showing Sellers using a wooden object to shatter the windows. 

“Every piece of glass was knocked out of the windows,” Gray said. “I mean, I have a little souvenir of what it looked like.”

Gray has spent significant time and money improving the area, and the damage to his stores has left him heartbroken. 

“I’m just trying to buy something and make it better, and you know, make the area better by doing so,” he said. “And then for someone to do something like this is really disappointing to say the least.”

While Gray and other business owners are frustrated by the recent rise in crime, others in the area maintain a different perspective. Drexel Holton, manager of Vineville Beverage and Cigar, which has been part of the strip for 30 years, believes the area is still safe.

“I believe for the most part they’re isolated. It’s not every night or every week we get this,” Holton said.

Despite the differing opinions, Gray said he was concerned about the overall increase in crime in Macon. He says that recent violence, including an incident last month where a Macon woman opened fire on a truck along Vineville Avenue, has made it harder to operate a business in the area. 

“I feel like just the overall crime in Macon has gotten worse. I don’t feel like there’s a lot of effort or things that have been done lately by the current administration,” Gray said.

Sellers, who was arrested by Bibb County Sheriff’s deputies, is facing two counts of burglary and eight counts of criminal damage to property. Authorities recovered two of the stolen items in his possession. Sellers is being held without bond.

While the damage left behind is significant, Gray says he won’t give up on Vineville Avenue. 

“I’m going to continue to try and make this area a better place,” he said.