Tag: armed robbery

Convicted of killing teen at a Marrero playground, Elijah Augustus and Trenton Tatum sentenced to life in prison

A Jefferson Parish judge on Wednesday (Feb. 5), sentenced two Harvey men to spend the rest of their lives in prison for their convictions of luring a teenager to a public playground in Marrero with claims of selling him a gun but instead shooting him to death while trying to rob him.

Elijah Augustus, 23, and Trenton Tatum, 33, were convicted as charged last month of the second-degree murder of 19-year-old Hassan Veal, who died at Pard Playground on the night of Aug. 5, 2021. They additionally were convicted of conspiracy to commit armed robbery.

A third defendant, Tyron Edwards, 23, of Harvey, pleaded guilty to manslaughter and conspiracy to commit armed robbery on Sept. 10, 2024. He was sentenced to 25 years in prison. Evidence shows that Edwards, who is Tatum’s nephew, fired one shot but did not shoot at Veal.

“They stole an innocent man’s life away from him and from his family for no good reason at all,” Assistant District Attorney Leo Aaron told jurors in closing argument on Jan. 10. “They took from him everything he was and everything he will ever be.”

On Wednesday, Augustus and Tatum were returned to 24th Judicial District Judge Michael Mentz’s courtroom to be sentenced. Veal’s mother, sister, aunt, cousin and high school history teacher each provided victim-impact testimony.

They described Veal as “a bright light” in their lives, who in younger years portrayed Jesus and a king during Christmas pageants at their church, who attended college studying to become an engineer and who encouraged his elderly grandmother to open a Facebook account “so she could stay in touch with the world.” Now, the family can only visit his grave and dwell on “what could have been,” they testified.

Responding to reports of gunfire on the night of Aug. 5, 2021, Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office deputies found Veal about 10:30 p.m., lying near the concrete drainage canal bank next to Pard Playground. He had been shot nine times, including once in the face, and was pronounced dead at the scene.

Just over three hours earlier, Veal electronically sent $666 to Augustus via Cash App as payment for a gun. That night, Veal and his girlfriend drove to the playground, expecting to meet Augustus to get the gun.

Edwards, Augustus and Tatum arrived at Pard earlier to await Veal’s arrival. After he arrived, Veal approached Edwards, who sat in his car. Tatum and Augustus emerged from hiding with guns drawn and demanded money from Veal.

Veal told the gunmen that he had no money. His girlfriend sat in his car nearby as the robbery unfolded. Armed with an assault-style pistol, Tatum, wearing a mask, confronted the girlfriend and ordered her to turn over money.

Veal called out that she had nothing. He tried to flee but could not escape. Moments later, the gunmen opened fire on Veal.

The incident was recorded by a nearby residential security system, showing the muzzle flashes, beginning from the one Edwards fired as he stepped out of his car and those Tatum and Augustus fired.

Tatum “for no reason, completely unprovoked, unloads 26 rounds at Hassan Veal. A bright constant muzzle flash from a semi-automatic rifle, bullet after bullet at an unarmed 19-year-old begging for his life,” Assistant DA Aaron told jurors last month, describing the surveillance video recording.

Veal’s girlfriend fled in his car but returned after the gunmen sped away and remained until deputies arrived.

In all, thirty-one bullet casings, fired by three firearms, were recovered at the murder scene. Twenty-six of those bullets were .223-caliber and 5.56 mm, all fired from the same weapon – Tatum’s. Deputies also found an iPhone, which the Sheriff’s Office Digital Forensic Unit determined belonged to Edwards. He dropped it during the crime. It led to his arrest.

The Digital Forensic Unit found text messages on Edwards’ phone showing that he was communicating with Augustus, including a message saying “Y’all seen that car,” a message coinciding with the timing of Veal’s arrival at the playground.

As the investigation unfolded, detectives arrested Augustus. The Digital Forensic Unit found that Augustus had been in contact with Veal seven times during the day of the murder. The last call between Augustus and Veal was at 10:24 p.m., three minutes before the first of six 911 calls reporting gunfire was made.

Augustus also was in contact with Tatum, who days before the murder discussed setting up “a lick,” or an armed robbery. They had a similar exchange on the day of the murder, in which Tatum asked Augustus about setting up a robbery. Augustus replied that he had something in mind – Veal.

The Sheriff’s Office further confirmed through Cash App that Veal transferred $666 to Augustus 3 ½ hours before the homicide. The detectives also gathered evidence through Augustus’ cell phone location services showing he was at the playground during the murder.

On Aug. 11, 2021, Tatum was located and arrested at a motel in the 5300 block of the Westbank Expressway in Marrero. A .40-caliber pistol found in the motel room. The Sheriff’s Office Crime Lab determined it was used in the murder.

Detectives also searched Tatum’s cell phone and learned that two hours after the murder, he used the device to search for news stories about the murder. He also searched the internet for his name in association with Veal’s murder, and inquired about criminal defenses, including how to defend oneself from assertions raised by “a snitch.”

Tatum additionally was convicted of two counts of being a convicted felon in possession of a firearm. He was forbidden from possessing firearms because of his 2010 convictions of attempted second-degree murder, for which he received a 15-year prison sentence.

The defense attorneys argued that Tatum and Augustus were wrongly accused and are innocent. They assailed the prosecution’s key witness as being untruthful and sought to undermine the Sheriff’s Office investigation.

The jury deliberated about three hours on Jan. 10 in finding Tatum and Augustus guilty as charged.

In addition to sentencing the duo to life in prison for the murder, Judge Mentz ordered each man to serve 49 years in prison for conspiracy to commit armed robbery. The judge also sentenced Tatum to two 20-year sentences for each of the firearm possession counts. All sentences were run concurrently.

After the sentencing hearing, Augustus pleaded guilty to unrelated charges of possession of Tramadol, possession of a firearm while in possession of a controlled dangerous substance (marijuana), and to misdemeanor charges of marijuana possession and disturbing the peace. Judge Mentz sentenced Augustus to five years for each of the felonies, and six months and a $100 fine for the misdemeanors.

Assistant District Attorneys Leo Aaron and James Wascom prosecuted the case.

 

Daniel Tenner sentenced to life plus 139 years for murdering Mississippi woman

A Jefferson Parish judge on Friday (Sept. 15) sentenced Daniel Tenner to life plus 139 years in prison for his conviction of killing a Mississippi woman while robbing her during a cell phone sale they arranged through social media.

Tenner, 21, of Jackson, Miss., shot Morgan Tyrone in the back of her head after she drove from her home in Pascagoula, Miss., to the West Bank to purchase an iPhone 13 for $300 on the evening of April 10, 2022. She died in the driver’s seat of her minivan.

Tyrone was 24. She was murdered in front of her partner and her partner’s 13-month-old son who was in a child seat.

Tenner used a woman’s Facebook account to communicate with Tyrone via Facebook Marketplace. Tyrone believed she was negotiating the purchase with a woman.

A Jefferson Parish jury on Aug. 15 found Tenner guilty as charged of first-degree murder, armed robbery and obstruction of justice in connection with the crimes.

Click here to read about the trial and conviction.

Tenner appeared Friday before 24th Judicial District Judge Donald “Chick” Foret to receive the sentences.

Tyrone’s older brother, mother and partner provided victim-impact testimony. Before announcing the sentence, Judge Foret praised the Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office homicide detectives for quickly solving the case and lectured Tenner, referring from the 29 pages of notes he said he jotted down during the trial.

Judge Foret noted testimony from the forensic pathologist who conducted the autopsy: Tenner placed the pistol barrel to Tyrone’s neck and fired, the bullet severing her spinal cord and killing her instantly. He noted that Tenner shot the woman in front of her partner and the toddler. “This is as bad as it gets, Mr. Tenner,” Judge Foret said.

The punishment for first-degree murder is mandatory life in prison without benefit of probation, parole or suspension of sentence. Judge Foret sentenced Tenner to 99 years for the armed robbery and 40 years for the obstruction of justice – both the maximum sentences. Judge Foret ran the sentences consecutively, or back-to-back.

“If I could give you more, I’d give you more,” Judge Foret told Tenner. “This is a tragic thing you’ve done. You’ve ruined these peoples’ lives.”

The District Attorney’s Office did not seek the death penalty.

Assistant District Attorneys LaShanda Webb and Brittany Beckner prosecuted the case.

A manslaughter, an armed robbery and a battery send Shawn Carter to prison for 75 years

A Jefferson Parish judge on Monday (Aug. 21) sentenced Shawn Carter to 75 years in prison as a 3-time felon, based on his most recent conviction of robbing a Gretna convenience store while armed with a claw hammer.

Carter, 50, of Avondale, has a criminal history that includes beating a man to death using a hammer in 1994.

His most recent conviction occurred on July 26, when a Jefferson Parish jury found Carter guilty as charged of the armed robbery of a business in the 900 block of Lafayette Street.

At about 12:30 a.m., on Feb. 11, 2021, Carter walked into the business and approached the 42-year-old clerk who was seated behind the counter. Wielding a hammer, Carter ordered the clerk to surrender his cell phone and to refrain from activating the panic alarm. Carter then ordered the clerk to open the cash register and threatened to kill him if he did not comply.

After getting the cash, Carter fled with the clerk’s cell phone and three bottles of liquor. The Gretna Police Department linked Carter to the crime, leading to his arrest at his Avondale home by a federal task force.

At the time, Carter was on parole for his 1996 conviction of manslaughter.

That homicide occurred on June 1, 1994, when Carter, then age 20, fatally beat 21-year-old Christian Smith to death in Smith’s home in the 2100 block of Hancock Street in Gretna. Carter was charged with first-degree murder but pleaded guilty to manslaughter in exchange for a 40-year sentence. He was paroled in 2014.

On Monday, 24th Judicial District Judge Ray Steib sentenced Carter to 50 years in prison for the armed robbery. Judge Steib then resentenced Carter to 75 years in finding that he is 3-time felon under Louisiana’s habitual offender law. The predicate offenses included the armed robbery, the manslaughter and a conviction of battery of a correctional officer.

Assistant District Attorneys Laura Schneidau and Blaine Moncrief prosecuted the case.

Daniel Tenner convicted of murdering Mississippi woman during West Bank armed robbery

A Jefferson Parish jury on Tuesday night (Aug. 15) convicted Daniel Tenner of killing a Mississippi woman while robbing her during a cell phone sale arranged through social media.

Tenner, 21, of Jackson, Miss., is guilty as charged of the first-degree murder of Morgan Tyrone, 24, of Pascagoula, Miss., jurors unanimously decided after three hours of deliberations.

On the evening of April 10, 2022, Tyrone, her 22-year-old partner and their 13-month-old son traveled from Pascagoula to the West Bank so Tyrone could purchase an iPhone 13 for $300. Tyrone and a person she believed was a woman had been discussing the transaction through Facebook Marketplace. It was Tenner using a woman’s Facebook account.

Tenner directed Tyrone to an apartment complex in the 300 block of Friedrichs Road in unincorporated Gretna. There, Tenner approached the Tyrone’s minivan’s driver’s side window. During the ensuing discussion, he showed the phone he purportedly wanted to sell. He asked if they had the money and then asked if they had a tool with which he could remove the phone’s SIM card.

During that time, Tyrone and Tenner were hesitant to exchange the cash and phone. Growing doubtful that the transaction would occur, Tyrone turned away to put the cash on the minivan’s center console. That’s when Tenner brandished the pistol, pointed it at the left rear side of Tyrone’s head and shot her without provocation.

He then pointed the pistol at Tyrone’s partner in the front passenger’s seat and demanded the cash. He reached over Tyrone’s body to grab the cash and then ran away.

Tyrone’s partner called 911, but not knowing where she was, she flagged a passerby who was able to give the 911 operator their location.

Immediately after shooting Tyrone, Tenner fled to a nearby apartment and then to Jackson, Miss. The Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office received a tip via Crimestoppers identifying Tenner as the killer and giving his location. A U.S. Marshals Service fugitive task force found and arrested Tenner in Jackson on May 17, 2022.

Sheriff’s Office detectives confirmed Tenner’s whereabouts, including placing him at the murder scene and fleeing north toward Jackson, by using his cell phone records.

During the 1 ½-hour interview with a detective, Tenner confessed. At its conclusion, the detective left Tenner alone in the room with pen and paper. Tenner penned a statement in which he admitted shooting Tyrone but asserted he did so because she “was grabbing something” or thought she was taking his iPhone. “I was giving the phone to you guys for a cheap price,” he wrote. “Yes, I am truly sorry with what happen [sic]. I am. I didn’t mean for nothing like that to happen.”

Jurors watched a video recording of that interview and read Tenner’s statement.

Tenner’s public defenders argued their client was not guilty. They asserted that he was armed because he was meeting strangers at night. Tenner became fearful when Tyrone turned away from him, the defense asserted. They also described it as “a tragic accident.” They said that Tenner did not have specific intent to kill or inflict great bodily harm, which are necessary elements of proving murder.

In closing argument Tuesday, Assistant District Attorney LaShanda Webb reminded jurors that Tenner threatened to kill Tyrone’s partner if she didn’t give him the cash.

“What more do you need to prove intent?” Webb argued. “If it wasn’t about robbery, why would he even take the money? Why would he reach over Morgan, who he just killed, to take the money?”

In addition to the murder, jurors found Tenner guilty of armed robbery and obstruction of justice – for discarding the firearm he used to kill Tyrone.

Judge Donald “Chick” Foret of the 24th Judicial District Court is scheduled to sentence Tenner to a mandatory life sentence in prison on Sept. 15. The District Attorney’s Office did not seek the death penalty.

Assistant District Attorneys LaShanda Webb and Brittany Beckner prosecuted the case.

 

On parole for ’94 homicide, Shawn Carter convicted of robbing Gretna store using a hammer

A Jefferson Parish jury on Wednesday (July 26) found Shawn Carter guilty of robbing a Gretna convenience store while using a hammer.

Carter, 50, of Avondale, is guilty as charged of the armed robbery of the business. At the time he committed this crime, Carter was on parole for killing a man by beating him to death with a hammer.

About 12:30 a.m., on Feb. 11, 2021, Carter walked into the convenience store in the 900 block of Lafayette Street. He immediately approached the 42-year-old clerk who was seated behind the counter.

Wielding the hammer, Carter demanded the clerk hand over his phone and to refrain from activating a panic alarm. He ordered the clerk to open the cash register and threatened to kill the clerk if he didn’t comply.

In opening the register, the clerk dropped the cash drawer. Carter ordered the clerk to pick up the money. The clerk refused, and so Carter grabbed him by the throat and pushed him to the floor.

Carter pocketed the money, and the clerk fled to a stock room and locked the door. Through a window in the door, the clerk observed Carter taking three bottles of liquor and fleeing on Lafayette Street toward the Mississippi River.

In addition to the cash and liquor, Carter stole the clerk’s iPhone. An hour later, Gretna Police Department detectives tracked the stolen phone to a yard in the 600 block of 6th Street, about six blocks away from the crime scene. Carter’s fingerprint later was found on the phone, leading detectives to identify Carter as their suspect.

As he fled into the residential neighborhood after committing the armed robbery, Carter discarded his Atlanta Falcons cap and shirt in the 400 block of 9th Street. Gretna police recovered that evidence using a canine, Max, which tracked Carter’s scent from the crime scene. While canvassing the area for more evidence, officers found the claw hammer in a storm drain in that same block.

The U.S. Marshals Fugitive Task Force located and arrested Carter at his Avondale home on March 3, 2021.

A Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office Crime Lab DNA analyst, meanwhile, found Carter’s genetic material on the cap, shirt and hammer.

On June 1, 1994, Carter used a hammer to beat Christian Smith to death. Smith, 20, was found in his home in the 2100 block of Hancock Street in Gretna. The hammer was still embedded in his skull.

Carter fled with the Smith’s car and his property, including a mobile phone. Indicted for first-degree murder, he pleaded guilty in 1996 to manslaughter and was sentenced to 40 years in prison. He was paroled in 2014.

The jury, which heard evidence about the 1994 homicide, deliberated less than 50 minutes in finding Carter guilty as charged of the armed robbery. Judge Ray Steib of the 24th Judicial District Court is scheduled to sentence Carter on Aug. 21.

Assistant District Attorneys Laura Schneidau and Blaine Moncrief prosecuted the case.

Lamonte Loggins convicted of murdering Kenner store clerk during armed robbery

A Jefferson Parish jury on Wednesday evening (July 26) convicted Lamonte Loggins of standing over a helpless convenience store clerk during an armed robbery in Kenner and firing a 9mm bullet into his chest, killing him.

Loggins, 30, of Kenner, is guilty as charged of the first-degree murder of Abd El Ghader Sylla, 30. Sylla, whose wife was pregnant with their child, was working the overnight shift at the business at Williams Boulevard and West Esplanade Avenue when Loggins shot him.

Mortally wounded, Sylla still was able to call 911, saying he was “about to die.”

“I got shot. I got robbed, and I got shot,” he told the 911 operator before dropping the phone. He died from his injury soon after at a New Orleans hospital.

Loggins and his older brother, Eric Rodgers, planned the armed robbery and cased the business hours earlier. About 2 a.m., on Nov. 30, 2020, Rodgers entered the store, followed by Loggins. Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, they wore masks.

After pouring a cup of coffee and discussing liquor with Sylla, Loggins brandished a 9mm pistol and demanded cash. As he pulled out the pistol, a latex glove fell out of his pocket – Loggins’ DNA later was found on that glove.

Sylla dropped to his knees and held his hands over his head as he complied with Loggins’ demands. Sylla opened the register and removed the cash drawer so Loggins could get the money.

Without being provoked, Loggins then walked around the counter and began beating Sylla in the head with the pistol. Sylla fell onto his back as the beating continued. Loggins stood back and fired the bullet into Sylla’s chest, even as the victim pleadingly held his hands in the air in front of him.

Loggins and Rodgers fled to their car parked blocks away, as Sylla, still on his back on the floor behind the counter, called 911. He remained there until Kenner Police Department officers arrived.

During the ensuing investigation, Kenner Police Department detectives used numerous businesses’ and residences’ video surveillance cameras to track the suspects’ movement from the crime scene to the Lorie Drive apartment complex where both men lived.

But Loggins and Rodgers had gone to Biloxi, Miss., where they spent a night in a hotel and where Loggins threw the pistol into a business’s garbage receptacle. The following day, they caught bus to Memphis, Tenn., where they previously lived.

More than a week later, Rodgers called the Kenner Police Department. He told the lead case detective, Aaron Savoie, that Loggins killed Sylla. Federal marshals and local police arrested Loggins in Memphis on Dec. 8, 2020.

Rodgers, 32, pleaded guilty on Sept. 28, 2022 to manslaughter, obstruction of justice and armed robbery for his role in the crime. He received a 40-year sentence.

On Tuesday, as part of a plea agreement, Rodgers testified that he and Loggins planned the robbery, and that he was a participant because his government unemployment assistance hadn’t been credited to his debit card. But Rodgers testified that he did not know Loggins was going to shoot the clerk.

Under cross-examination by Loggins’ public defender, Rodgers was accused of urging Loggins to shoot Sylla. Rodgers, who has distinctive tattoos on his forehead and hands, was a regular customer at the business and could be easily identified, Loggins’ attorney argued. The defense attorney also argued that the state did not prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the gunshot killed Sylla, suggesting that  the medical treatment the victim received at the hospital could have caused his death.

The jury deliberated about an hour before returning with its verdicts. In addition to first-degree murder, jurors found Loggins guilty as charged of obstruction of justice, for tossing the murder weapon in a business’s garbage receptacle in Biloxi. Loggins also tossed the bullets from that pistol in a drainage canal in Kenner before he and Rodgers fled the state.

Judge Ellen Shirer Kovach of the 24th Judicial District Court is scheduled to sentence Loggins Aug. 9.

Assistant District Attorneys Carolyn Chkautovich and Brittany Beckner prosecuted the case.

 

Jacob Robinson guilty of Harvey armed robberies, aggravated battery

A Jefferson Parish jury on Wednesday (Feb. 16) found Jacob Robinson of Harvey guilty of robbing a family at gunpoint in their home and shooting a victim in the head during a struggle for the pistol. He was arrested after the victims turned on him and knocked him to the ground with a brick.

Robinson, 35, was convicted as charged of two counts of armed robbery and one count of aggravated battery.

The incident happened on March 29, 2020, in an apartment in the 1000 block of Orange Blossom Lane in Harvey. According to trial testimony, a man, his girlfriend, their two children and his cousin lived at the apartment.

His face covered with a mask and carrying a pistol, Robinson entered the apartment without knocking and demanded they give up money and cell phones. The girlfriend and one of her children were upstairs at the time, according to testimony.

One of the men gave up money and his phone. Then Robinson pointed the pistol at the other man, who was the children’s father. He pulled $10 from his pocket and threw it on the floor and handed over his cell phone, he testified.

Robinson then began backing up and holding his pistol up, leading the father to fear he was about to be shot, he testified. He then lunged at Robinson, and during the scuffle, the pistol discharged. The bullet grazed the father’s head and lodged in the ceiling.

The cousin then struck Robinson with the brick. The family called 911, and the Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office deputies arrived on the scene to find Robinson still present.

Robinson told deputies that he was the victim, and that he knew the residents who robbed and beat him. During this week’s trial, he further asserted that he went to the apartment because he was the residents’ illegal narcotics supplier and went to the apartment for a transaction.

The jury rejected the defense assertions and returned with its unanimous verdicts against Robinson, who has a history of convictions that include theft and battery.

Judge Donnie Rowan of the 24th Judicial District Court is scheduled to sentence Robinson on March 17.

Assistant District Attorneys Christina Fisher and Jennifer Voss prosecuted the case.

Wayne Norman sentenced to 99 years as a habitual offender

A Jefferson Parish judge on Wednesday (Nov. 6) sentenced Wayne Norman to 99 years in prison as a habitual offender, a week after he was convicted of robbing a 74-year-old man at gunpoint as the victim carried his Thanksgiving groceries into him Marrero home.

Norman 29, of Marrero, was convicted by a jury last week of armed robbery, aggravated flight and misdemeanor possession of stolen things in connection with the crimes he committed on Nov. 15, 2018.

According to evidence presented at trial, Norman spotted the 74-year-old victim at his bank’s drive drive-thru window and followed him to a grocery store. There, the victim purchased items for his family’s Thanksgiving meal. Norman then followed the victim to his home and robbed him in his driveway as the victim carried his groceries inside.

Shortly after, Norman, driving a stolen vehicle, led Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office deputies on a pursuit that ended in Harvey, where Norman crashed the vehicle into a utility pole and fled on foot. He discarded his clothing in a shed in a resident’s back yard, snuck inside and hid in a children’s bedroom closet. Deputies caught him there with property that belonged to the victim, who is now age 75.

Assistant District Attorneys Joshua Vanderhooft and Rachel Africk prosecuted the case.

Wayne Norman convicted of robbing Thanksgiving shopper, fleeing deputies in stolen vehicle

A Jefferson Parish jury Tuesday night (Oct. 29) found Wayne Norman guilty of robbing a 74-year-old Marrero man at gunpoint in his driveway as the victim carried his family’s Thanksgiving groceries into his home last year.

Norman, 29, of Marrero, was convicted as charged of armed robbery and aggravated flight in connection with his crimes that occurred on Nov. 15, 2018. The jury also found Norman guilty of a lesser, misdemeanor charge of possession of stolen property.

Norman first spotted the victim at his bank, from where he followed him to the grocery. Inside the grocery, Norman went so far as to place a large spiral-cut ham into the victim’s shopping cart and then followed him out of the grocery and to the victim’s home. There, as the victim was bringing groceries into his home, Norman approached, pointed a pistol at the victim’s face and demanded money. The victim complied, and the Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office was alerted.

Norman fled on foot and was located inside a Lynnbrook Drive home, where he hid in a child’s bedroom closet. A resident in the home heard something suspicious, and authorities were notified. Deputies found Norman and arrested him.

Some of his clothing items he wore during the robbery were located in a backyard shed at that address. The money and hearing aid batteries that Norman took from the victim were found in Norman’s pocket when he was apprehended.

That same day, Norman was observed driving a 2002 Ford Escape that had been stolen in New Orleans. He fled deputies who tried to stop him and crashed the vehicle into a utility pole in Harvey’s Woodmere subdivision before fleeing on foot. These crimes led to his conviction of aggravated flight and possession of stolen property.

The jury deliberated approximately 45 minutes in convicting Norman of the armed robbery and aggravated flight. Judge Nancy Miller of the 24th Judicial District Court is scheduled to sentence Norman on Monday (Nov. 4).

Assistant District Attorneys Joshua Vanderhooft and Rachel Africk prosecuted the case.

Sentences handed down in recent armed robbery convictions

A Jefferson Parish judge on Wednesday (May 29) sentenced Aaron Harrell to 35 years in prison for his conviction of robbing a woman at gunpoint as she stood in her daughter’s driveway.

Harrell, 40, of Jefferson, was convicted by a jury on May 14 of armed robbery and of being a convicted felon in possession of a firearm.

On the morning of May 24, 2018, Harrell robbed the victim of her diamond wedding ring, earrings and a wristwatch to obtain money to support his heroin addiction, according to trial testimony.

Judge Michael Mentz of the 24th Judicial District Court sentenced Harrell to 30 years for the armed robbery with an additional 5-year enhancement because a firearm was used in the crime.

Judge Mentz also sentenced Harrell to 20 years in prison for his being a convicted felon in possession of a firearm and ran that concurrent to the 35 years. Harrell was barred from possessing firearms because of past convictions of armed robbery and narcotics offenses.

A multiple-bill hearing is set for June 13.

Separately, Judge Scott Schlegel on May 23 sentenced Bobby Johnson, 45, of Metairie, to 40 years in prison for his convictions of first-degree robbery and simple kidnapping. Johnson was convicted of those offenses on May 14.

Just after midnight on Nov. 18, 2016, Johnson robbed a woman as she prepared to feed stray cats behind businesses on Airline Drive near David Drive. Johnson then forced her to two banks in failed attempts to withdraw cash from ATMs, and then to the Kenner Walmart in hopes of getting cash back from a small purchase. The victim escaped and called for help, leading Johnson to flee.

Judge Schlegel sentenced Johnson to 40 years for the first-degree robbery and five years for the simple kidnapping and ran the sentences concurrent to one-another. At the time of the crimes, Johnson was on parole for a 1996 armed robbery conviction. A multiple-bill hearing is scheduled for July 8.

Assistant District Attorneys Douglas Rushton and Richard Olivier prosecuted Harrell.

Assistant District Attorneys Zachary Popovich and Tucker Wimberly prosecuted Johnson.