Armed robbery that crosses state lines is prosecuted at a federal level and habitually carries a very severe sentence.
In August, a man from Alabama who was convicted of 10 armed robberies, including one in Newnan was sentenced to life in a federal prison.
Tariq Khalil Jones was sentenced to life plus 282 years in prison, reported the Newnan Times-Herald.
He took part in a string of armed robberies as well as a carjacking, stated A. Clark Morris, Acting U.S. Attorney for the Middle District of Alabama.
Jones was accused of robbing convenience stores and other businesses that contained cash, including the QuikTrip store on Bullsboro Drive in January 2016.
Man charged with armed robbery in Newnan
Jones allegedly pointed firearms at victims during these robberies. He took cigarettes and cash from the store in Newnan after threatening a clerk with a handgun, according to federal prosecutors.
Jones brandished a firearm during each robbery. While he was fleeing the scene of one, he shot at a car containing a man and his 3-year-old daughter inside. Neither of them were harmed.
During another robbery, Jones carjacked a vehicle from a woman in the parking lot of the store.
Jones pleaded not guilty to all charges at the time when he was arranged last September. He was tried in June when a jury found him guilty of each of the 23 counts in the indictment.
The sheer volume of offenses meant Jones faces the rest of his life behind bars. There is no parole in a federal prison.
Eleven of the counts he was charged with carry a mandatory life sentence – the 10 robberies and carjacking. Twelve counts involved using a firearm during the robberies, carjacking and shooting.
The first of the firearms counts led to a 7-year sentence. Jones was sentenced to 25 years each for the remaining 11 firearms counts.
Jones was convicted of each of the 23 counts of his indictment — one for carjacking, 10 for robbery, and 12 for using a firearm during the commission of those crimes.
Four prior robbery convictions in a state court triggered an automatic life sentence.
Acting U.S. Attorney Morris said:
“Tariq Jones terrified innocent people by putting a gun in their faces and demanding money. He showed no regard for human life when he shot at a vehicle with a father and his 3-year-old daughter inside just because he thought he was being followed.”
Morris described Jones as a violent criminal and said he hopes the sentence sends a clear message to other offenders that federal prosecutors will use all of their power and resources to combat violent crime.
If you have been charged with a violent crime you should hire an experienced Georgia criminal defense lawyer. Call the Law Offices of Michael West at (404) 913-1529.