James Edward Neason was convicted of felony murder, criminal attempt to commit armed robbery, aggravated assault, burglary, and possession of a weapon during the commission of a crime, stemming from the murder of Patricio Ibarra and the assault on Severo Vasquez Ramos.1 He was sentenced to a term of life plus 20 years in prison. On appeal, Neason challenges the sufficiency of the evidence to support his convictions and the admission of an incriminating statement made by his co-defendant. Finding no error, we affirm. Viewed in a light most favorable to the verdict, the evidence shows the following: Patricio Ibarra and Severo Vasquez Ramos, two Mexican men, resided together in a Clayton County, Georgia apartment complex. Around 10:00 p.m. on February 18, 2000, Neason and Anthony Jacob Castillo, accompanied by a female, visited Ibarra’s and Ramos’ apartment. They knocked on the door of the apartment, and when Ramos opened the door, Neason and Castillo offered to sell him marijuana and to let him have sexual contact with the female. Ramos testified that the shorter of the two men did all of the talking. Ramos declined the offer and closed the door on the two men.
Approximately two hours later, there was another knock on the door of Ibarra’s and Ramos’ apartment. Before anyone could answer, two masked intruders knocked the door down and entered the apartment. The taller of the two men did the talking this time. Ramos testified that the intruders’ voices were similar to those of the two men who had visited the apartment earlier that evening, and they were also of the same height and weight and were wearing the same clothes as the previous visitors. He later identified the shorter man as Neason and the taller man as Castillo. Ramos also testified that Castillo pointed a handgun at him and demanded money; that he complied and gave Castillo $45; but that Ibarra refused and threw a beer bottle, so Castillo shot and killed him. Neason, who was serving as a lookout to ensure that no one else entered the room, grabbed Castillo and the two fled the scene. Neason and Castillo returned to Castillo’s residence, which was located in the same apartment complex as Ibarra’s and Ramos’ apartment.
