Mark Anthone Pitts, Rolex Heist, MI 2016

SPRINGFIELD, MO – Greed and a pair of sledgehammers. That’s what brought two Detroit men crashing down after a brazen daylight robbery of Maxon’s Diamond Merchants on September 1, 2016. Mark Anthone Pitts, 32, and Justin B. Anderson, 32, both of Detroit, Mich., have admitted to their roles in the $118,000 heist, according to Acting United States Attorney Tom Larson for the Western District of Missouri.

The scene unfolded like a bad movie. An unidentified man initially held the front door open, ignoring employee requests to secure it. When staff attempted to physically close the door, the man shoved one of them. Then, Pitts and Anderson stormed in, brandishing small sledgehammers. Fear gripped the store as employees retreated, anticipating violence. The duo wasted no time smashing glass counters and display cases specifically targeting Rolex watches.

According to Pitts’s own admission, the plan wasn’t about serious injury, but intimidation was key. He confessed to officers that while he didn’t *intend* to threaten anyone, he was prepared to use the sledgehammer on resisting employees. The pair made off with eleven Rolex watches, collectively valued at $118,000, before fleeing the scene. A stolen 2000 Dodge Stratus, lifted earlier that day from a local Target, was supposed to be their getaway car.

But the escape didn’t go as planned. Cell phone footage captured by a store employee showed the Stratus waiting, but it inexplicably left without the robbers. Pitts, apparently abandoned by his accomplice, was apprehended after dedicated employees followed him and directed police to his location. Anderson wasn’t so lucky; he pleaded guilty on March 9, 2017, while Pitts followed suit today before U.S. Magistrate Judge David P. Rush.

Both Pitts and Anderson now face up to 20 years in federal prison without parole. The sentence, however, will be determined by the court, factoring in federal sentencing guidelines and other relevant considerations. Presentence investigations are underway by the United States Probation Office. This wasn’t a sophisticated operation; it was a desperate grab for luxury goods that quickly unraveled.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Patrick Carney and Nhan D. Nguyen are prosecuting the case, which was a joint investigation by the FBI and the Springfield, Mo., Police Department. The Grimy Times will continue to follow this case as sentencing dates are announced, bringing you the unvarnished truth about crime in America.