Eric Wade Forcier, Armed Robbery, Minnesota 2013

**ARMED ROBBERY ROCKS NORTHFIELD HOTEL**

A 27-year-old Farmington man and his accomplice, a 29-year-old Apple Valley woman, have pleaded guilty to armed robbery and other crimes in connection with a brazen heist at America’s Best Value Inn and Suites in Northfield.

Eric Wade Forcier, 27, of Farmington, and Julie Ann Campana, 29, of Apple Valley, appeared in federal court in St. Paul yesterday, where they pleaded guilty to multiple counts of armed robbery, firearm charges, and other crimes.

According to court documents, Forcier entered the hotel on October 29, 2012, wearing a Halloween mask and pointed a handgun at the night manager, demanding money from the cash register and safe. He made off with $114, but was eventually arrested after fleeing the scene.

Forcier’s crimes didn’t stop there. He also robbed four other businesses in the Twin Cities area, including Eddy’s Bar & Grill in Inver Grove Heights, Domino’s Pizza in Apple Valley, SuperAmerica in Bloomington, and Jiffy Lube in Apple Valley.

Forcier faces a potential maximum penalty of 20 years in prison on each of the two robbery counts, life in prison for brandishing a firearm, and 10 years in prison for being a felon in possession of a firearm. Campana faces a potential maximum penalty of 20 years in prison.

The case is the result of an investigation by the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Dakota County Sheriff’s Office, the Rice County Sheriff’s Office, and the police departments of Apple Valley, Bloomington, Inver Grove Heights, and Northfield.

The Hobbs Act, passed by Congress in 1946, allows federal prosecutors to prosecute individuals who commit armed robberies of businesses engaged in interstate commerce.

Forcier’s prior convictions include second-degree drug possession, possession of stolen property, and fleeing police in a motor vehicle. His accomplice, Campana, admitted to being the lookout and get-away driver for Forcier during the robberies.

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