'Just Kidding,' Armed Robber Tells Country Club Patrons

A Holiday man is in hot water after Pasco County Sheriff’s deputies say he attempted to rob the Forest Hills Golf & Country Club Sunday night.

Deputies say the 22-year-old man walked into the bar of the 5211 Boardwalk St. club around 8:12 p.m. wearing a gray hoodie and blue bandana while brandishing a black “handgun.” The man pointed the gun at a female bartender and told her it was a “hold up.”

The man then forced the bartender behind the bar and demanded cash from the register. Not realizing the weapon was actually an Airsoft gun, the woman was in fear for her life, an arrest report stated.

At this time, the man realized there were two patrons sitting at the bar. Discovering he and the bartender weren’t alone, he “took off the bandana and hood and stated he was just kidding.”

While the man denied the entire incident to police, even saying he wasn’t wearing a hoodie or bandana, the entire act was caught on video surveillance. As for that Airsoft gun, the man told deputies he had it on him because he had been out “shooting frogs.”

Kidding or not, the man now faces attempted armed robbery, possession of drug paraphernalia and violation of pretrial release charges. Deputies said they also found syringes on him after arrest. One of the syringes tested positive for methamphetamine.

Stephen Randall Koulias of 1306 Flotilla Drive was charged in the case. He was being held Monday without bond. Koulias has been arrested several times in the past on such charges as robbery, burglary and dealing in stolen property, jail records indicate.

Photo Credit: Stephen Koulias/Pasco County Sheriff’s Office