Rochester man who earlier robbed Buffalo Wild Wings now accused of manslaughter in car crash

Agape Towns, who was part of a hostage-holding robbery at a Buffalo Wild Wings, is now accused of manslaughter in a crash that killed a Brighton woman.

Towns, 31, was on parole for the 2011 robbery of the Buffalo Wild Wings in Henrietta at the time of the February crash.

Killed in the crash was 78-year-old Mary Mills, a Brighton resident.

The crash happened in the area of Clifford Avenue and Barons Street in northeast Rochester. Police said that Towns was driving eastbound when he attempted to pass another vehicle and lost control and struck a vehicle driven by Mills head-on.

Towns, of Rochester, was charged with aggravated unlicensed operation of a motor vehicle in the third degree, a misdemeanor. Rochester police said he’d had multiple license suspensions and did not have a valid license.

A grand jury this week handed up an indictment charging Towns with second-degree manslaughter and second-degree assault.

Towns in 2019 was released from prison after his robbery conviction with the 2011 crimes was tossed out by an appellate court. Appellate judges ruled that a judge wrongly injected himself into plea negotiations with one of Towns’ co-defendants.

Towns then agreed to plead guilty to robbery in exchange for an eight-year sentence, which led to his release. He had originally been sentenced to 17 years on armed robbery charges.

In the Buffalo Wild Wings robbery, staff was held hostage after closing for almost an hour because the get-away driver for Towns and a co-defendant drove away after seeing a police car. According to some victims, the robbers pointed a shotgun at their heads and threatened to shoot them after a round of “eeny, meeny, miny, moe.”

Towns was serving in the Marines when arrested for the robbery.