Milwaukee Men Get Prison Time for Pharmacy Robberies

Four Milwaukee men have been sentenced to federal prison for their roles in armed robberies of pharmacies in the city and surrounding areas. Robert K. Love, 30, and Theodore D. Smith, 31, carried out an armed robbery of a pharmacy on November 3, 2021, and a second robbery on November 7, 2021, just days later.

The robberies involved the brandishing of a handgun, used to intimidate, threaten, and physically assault pharmacy staff. The robbers stole significant quantities of controlled substances, which they then sought to distribute. A federal grand jury returned indictments against Love, Smith, and Alex M. Rollins, 31, who all later pleaded guilty.

Smith was sentenced on February 29, 2024, to a 15-year federal prison term. At the time of the robberies, Smith was on supervised release following an earlier federal prison term imposed for similar crimes in 2015.

Rollins was sentenced on September 7, 2023, to a 6-year federal prison term.

Love was sentenced on May 2, 2024, to a 14-year prison term, followed by a term of supervised release. In addition to the November 2021 robberies, Love had also carried out thefts of three handguns from federal firearms licensees in October 2021 and made false statements to law enforcement in November 2022.

Kenta D. Tittle, 23, Love’s co-actor in the handgun thefts, was sentenced to a 22-month prison term. U.S. District Judge J.P. Stadtmueller emphasized the seriousness of these crimes and their effect on individual victims and the community at large.

The investigation was handled by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and Milwaukee Police Department, working as part of the FBI’s Milwaukee Area Violent Crime Task Force. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Farris Martini and Margaret B. Honrath.

U.S. Attorney Gregory J. Haanstad stated, “Pharmacy robberies cause multiple layers of harm, placing the physical safety of others at risk, traumatizing victims, and introducing controlled substances into the community.” The FBI and ATF will continue to work together to bring individuals like these to justice and increase the safety of citizens in their communities.