JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. – A Speedway, Indiana, man was sentenced in federal court today for his role in the armed robbery of a Walgreens pharmacy in Jefferson City, Missouri.

Jerome Scott King, 20, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Roseann Ketchmark to 14 years in federal prison without parole.

On Feb. 28, 2019, King pleaded guilty to armed robbery and to brandishing a firearm during a crime of violence. King admitted that he and three other men robbed the Walgreens at 2002 Missouri Boulevard at gunpoint shortly after midnight on July 25, 2018. Co-defendant Raymond Allen Craig, 21, of Indianapolis, Indiana, has also pleaded guilty and awaits sentencing. A third co-defendant has not been convicted and the fourth man has not been identified.

Police officers arrived as the robbers were running from the business. They fled in a vehicle driven by King. As officers followed in pursuit, occupants of the vehicle began throwing items from the vehicle, including more than 4,000 tablets of various controlled substances taken during the robbery with an aggregate value of $9,264.

Multiple officers pursued the vehicle eastbound on U.S. Highway 54 into Callaway County. The Missouri State Highway Patrol deployed spike strips at the U.S. 54-AA/OO interchange. King’s vehicle began to slow, left the highway, crossed the outer road and crashed near Jazel Lane in Holts Summit, Missouri. King and Craig were apprehended; an unidentified man escaped. Officers recovered the loaded Smith & Wesson 9mm handgun used in the pharmacy robbery. The firearm had been stolen from Indianapolis, Indiana.

King admitted he entered the Walgreens to conduct surveillance and then reported the number of persons inside to Craig. Craig and others entered the pharmacy wearing medical masks over their faces and medical style gloves on their hands. The unidentified man displayed a firearm and confronted the store clerk. One of the suspects, whose identity could not be determined from the surveillance video, zip-tied the clerk’s hands behind his back while a firearm was pointed at his head, led him to the rear of the business near the pharmacy area, and forced him down on the floor. Craig jumped over the counter and confronted the pharmacist, brandishing a firearm in a threatening manner, and removed controlled substances from the pharmacy.

According to court documents, this armed robbery was part of a larger scheme of violence perpetuated by King across the United States during the spring and summer of 2018. On June 7, 2018, King participated in the robbery of a CVS pharmacy in Hot Springs, Arkansas, during which a firearm was brandished and an employee was physically restrained. On June 15, 2018, King participated in the robbery of a CVS pharmacy in Metairie, Louisiana, during which a firearm was brandished. King also faces criminal charges in those states. According to court documents, King is associated with members of The Mob, an Indianapolis street gang.

Although King and his co-defendants are aware of the identity of the fourth participant in this crime, according to court documents, none of them have identified that individual.

This case is being prosecuted by Supervisory Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael S. Oliver. It was investigated by the Jefferson City, Mo., Police Department, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and the FBI.