Jerome Scott King, Armed Pharmacy Robbery, Missouri 2018

A shocking case of armed robbery has come to a close in Missouri. On July 25, 2018, Jerome Scott King, 20, of Speedway, Indiana, and three other men robbed a Walgreens pharmacy at gunpoint in Jefferson City, Missouri.

The pharmacy, located at 2002 Missouri Boulevard, was targeted in the early hours of the morning. King and his accomplices, including co-defendant Raymond Allen Craig, 21, of Indianapolis, Indiana, entered the store wearing medical masks over their faces and medical style gloves on their hands.

According to court documents, King admitted to conducting surveillance at the Walgreens before the robbery. He then reported the number of people inside the store to Craig, who entered the pharmacy with the others. The robbers brandished firearms and zip-tied the hands of the store clerk behind his back. They forced him to the rear of the business and removed controlled substances from the pharmacy.

The robbers fled the scene in a vehicle driven by King, but officers from the Jefferson City Police Department and the Missouri State Highway Patrol were hot on their heels. As the vehicle pursued, occupants began throwing items out of the window, including over 4,000 tablets of various controlled substances worth $9,264.

King's vehicle eventually crashed near Jazel Lane in Holts Summit, Missouri, and he and Craig were apprehended. An unidentified man escaped. The loaded Smith & Wesson 9mm handgun used in the robbery was recovered, and it was found to have been stolen from Indianapolis, Indiana.

King, who has been associated with members of The Mob, an Indianapolis street gang, pleaded guilty to armed robbery and brandishing a firearm during a crime of violence on February 28, 2019. He was sentenced to 14 years in federal prison without parole by U.S. District Judge Roseann Ketchmark.

This case is being prosecuted by Supervisory Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael S. Oliver. The investigation was a collaborative effort between the Jefferson City Police Department, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and the FBI.

King's involvement in the armed robbery was part of a larger scheme of violence perpetuated across the United States during the spring and summer of 2018. He also faces criminal charges in Arkansas and Louisiana for his role in the robbery of two CVS pharmacies.

Source: https://www.justice.gov/usao-wdmo/pr/indiana-man-sentenced-14-years-armed-pharmacy-robbery