Crimes Took Place in District of Columbia and Maryland
WASHINGTON - Darrell Blackwell, 24, and Michael Kemp, 27, both of Washington, D.C., have been indicted on federal charges alleging that they conspired to commit a series of armed robberies of 7-Eleven convenience stores in the District of Columbia and Maryland.
The indictment was announced today by U.S. Attorney Channing D. Phillips and Peter Newsham, Acting Chief of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD).
Blackwell was arrested on April 28, 2017 in the District of Columbia and made his first appearance today in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. He was ordered held pending a detention hearing set for May 4, 2017. Also, a status hearing in his case is set for May 9, 2017, before the Honorable Amy Berman Jackson.
Kemp will be presented at a future date. He will be brought to the District of Columbia, by writ, from Maryland where is serving a sentence on unrelated charges.
The indictment, filed last month, charges Blackwell with one count of conspiracy to interfere with commerce by robbery; two counts of interference with interstate commerce by robbery; two counts of armed robbery; two counts of unauthorized use of a vehicle in a crime of violence, and 12 federal firearms offenses.
The indictment charges Kemp with one count of conspiracy to interfere with commerce by robbery; two counts of interference with interstate commerce by robbery; two counts of armed robbery; two counts of unauthorized use of a vehicle during a crime of violence, and five federal firearms offenses.
The indictment also includes a forfeiture allegation seeking all proceeds that can be traced to the firearms offenses.
According to the indictment, Blackwell and Kemp conspired to and executed the armed robberies of six 7-Eleven convenience stores, and individual patrons of those stores, in the District of Columbia and Maryland between January and June 2013. As alleged in the indictment, from January through June 2013, Blackwell, Kemp and others, engaged in a conspiracy to commit a series of armed robberies of 7-Eleven convenience stores, businesses engaged in and affecting interstate commerce, obtaining cash and lottery tickets for their own benefit. According to the indictment, Blackwell, Kemp, and others, used firearms in the commission of these offenses and robbed individual patrons, present at some of the robberies. Lastly, the indictment alleges that Blackwell and Kemp used, without authorization, cars belonging to others in the execution of the armed robberies.
The robberies took place on the following dates and times:
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Jan. 5, 2013, approximately 5:20 a.m.: 4100 block of Kenilworth Avenue, Bladensburg, Md.
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Jan. 25, 2013, approximately 4:30 a.m.: 1900 block of Rhode Island Avenue NE.
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Jan. 27, 2013, approximately 8:10 p.m.: 7900 block of Georgia Avenue, Silver Spring, Md.
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Jan. 31, 2013, approximately 11:40 p.m. 7400 block of Georgia Avenue NW.
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Feb. 16, 2013, approximately 3:05 p.m.: 8200 block of Georgia Avenue, Silver Spring, Md.
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June 12, 2013, approximately 2:50 p.m.: 2500 block of Benning Road NE.
An indictment is merely a formal charge that a defendant has committed a violation of criminal laws and every defendant is presumed innocent until, and unless, proven guilty.
In announcing the charges, U.S. Attorney Phillips and Acting Chief Newsham expressed appreciation for the work performed by detectives and officers of the Metropolitan Police Department. They also expressed appreciation for the assistance provided by the Montgomery County, Md. Police Department and the City of Bladensburg, Md. Police Department. They acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including, Paralegal Specialist Teesha Tobias, and Legal Assistants Peter Gaboton and Kate Abrey. Finally, they commended the work of Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jennifer Kerkhoff and Kacie Weston, who are prosecuting the case.
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys
