By SPEAKIN’ OUT NEWS
COBB COUNTY, Ga. — A former tire-shop employee is accused of working with a store manager to steal 438 tires valued at nearly $90,000 from the business where both men worked.
According to court records cited by WSB-TV, Darren Manson and Mavis Tires and Brakes manager Paul Helton allegedly carried out the thefts between June 5 and July 11, 2026. Investigators estimated the stolen tires were worth approximately $89,579.
The arrest warrant alleges that Helton knowingly allowed Manson to enter the Mavis Tires location on Chastain Meadows Parkway after normal business hours. During several visits, Manson allegedly loaded tires into a truck while Helton provided access to the building.
Authorities said surveillance video captured the truck believed to have been used during the thefts. Investigators reportedly turned to Flock Safety cameras—automated license-plate readers used by law-enforcement agencies—to trace the vehicle’s movements during their investigation.
Manson is no longer employed by the Mavis Tires location. Following his arrest, he was being held in the Cobb County Jail without bond, according to jail information available when the original report was published.
Helton was identified in the arrest warrant as an alleged participant in the scheme. However, his name had not appeared in Cobb County jail records at the time of WSB-TV’s report.
The allegations remain subject to court proceedings, and both men are presumed innocent unless proven guilty. Authorities have not publicly disclosed what allegedly happened to the hundreds of missing tires or whether any have been recovered.