Prosecution Came as Part of Project Safe Neighborhoods
Initiative
Lynchburg, VIRGINIA – Justin Stallings, a Danville man who
was convicted in March of committing seven armed robberies of businesses in
Danville, Bedford, Rocky Mount, and Prospect Hill, N.C., was sentenced today to
54 years and 7 months incarceration in U.S. District Court in Lynchburg. United
States Attorney Thomas T. Cullen and David W. Archey, Special Agent in Charge
of the FBI’s Richmond Division made the announcement today as part of the
Western District of Virginia’s ongoing Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN)
initiative to reduce violent crime.
A jury convicted Stallings, 34, in March, following a
three-day trial of six counts of Hobbs Act robbery, one count of conspiracy to
commit Hobbs Act Robbery, six counts of using a firearm in commission of a
Hobbs Act robbery, and one count of being a convicted felon illegally in
possession of a firearm.
“This case illustrates our commitment to prosecuting violent
offenders and serious firearms offenses in federal court,” U.S. Attorney Cullen
stated today. “I am grateful for the
hard work and continuing support of our many state and local partners in
helping us to identify violent offenders in specific communities and hold them
accountable under federal law.”
“The FBI is fully committed to identifying violent offenders
who prey on our communities and removing them from our streets,” Special Agent
in Charge Archey said today. “Mr. Stallings robbed multiple businesses and
victimized employees during his crime spree, and the sentence handed down today
is just. This investigation was
conducted by the FBI Richmond Safe Streets Gang Task Force, who along with our
state and local partners, will continue to utilize our manpower and resources
to protect the communities we serve.”
A jury found that Stallings committed seven armed robberies
between December 2016 and February 2017.
At each location, Stallings entered a store near closing time and
pointed his firearm at employees.
Through fear and intimidation of the employees, he then proceeded to
steal cash from the register and goods from the store. All told, Stallings used a firearm to commit
robberies at each of the following businesses in Virginia and North Carolina:
Dollar General
located on South Main Street in Danville, Va., on December 8, 2016;
Dollar General
located on Westover Drive in Danville, Va. on January 8, 2017;
KFC located on
Memorial Drive in Danville, Va., on January 11, 2017;
Charlie’s Stop N
Shop located on Westover Drive in Danville, Va., on January 20, 2017;
Dollar General
located in Caswell County, North Carolina, on January 25, 2017;
Dollar General
located on Blue Ridge Avenue in Bedford, Va., on February 5, 2017;
Dollar General
located on Pell Avenue in Rocky Mount, Va., on February 6, 2017.
The investigation of the case was conducted by the Federal
Bureau of Investigation, the Danville Police Department, the Pittsylvania
County Sheriff’s Office, the Caswell County (N.C.) Sheriff’s Office, the
Bedford Police Department, the Rocky Mount Police Department and the Office of
the Commonwealth’s Attorney for Bedford County.
Assistant United States Attorneys Christopher Kavanaugh and Rachel
Swartz prosecuted the case for the United States.
PSN is the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s
violent crime reduction efforts. PSN is
an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime.
Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the
most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive
solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement
efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based
prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.
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