BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – A federal grand jury yesterday indicted a Birmingham man in connection to an armed robbery of a Shell gas station, announced U.S. Attorney Jay E. Town and Federal Bureau of Investigation Special Agent in Charge Johnnie Sharp, Jr.
A two-count indictment filed in U.S. District Court charges Dennis Dewayne Dothard, 37, with one count of Hobbs Act Robbery and one count of carrying and brandishing a firearm during and in relation to a violent crime.
“The FBI once again showed its investigative prowess in swiftly investigating and solving this crime,” Town said. “We also offer our gratitude to our local law enforcement partners for smartly apprehending the defendant.”
The Hobbs Act prohibits actual or attempted robbery that affects interstate commerce and that involves the taking of property from another person by means of actual or threatened force or violence. The maximum penalty for Hobbs Act robbery is 20 years in prison.
Brandishing a firearm during and in relation to a violent crime carries a mandatory seven years in prison per count, to be served consecutively to any other sentence imposed for the crime.
FBI investigated the cases along with the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency, Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office and Hoover Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Kevin Sanchez is prosecuting the case.
An indictment is merely an allegation and the defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
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