BATON ROUGE, LA - Acting United States Attorney Corey Amundson announced today that Judge James J. Brady has sentenced KEITH MIGUAL WILLIAMS, age 46, of Baton Rouge, Louisiana, to serve twenty-five years in federal prison for conducting a string of convenience store robberies last summer. WILLIAMS was also ordered to pay more than $13,000 in restitution to the victims and will be required to serve a three-year term of supervised release upon his release from prison.
In April, WILLIAMS pled guilty to five counts of interference with commerce by robbery and one count of using, carrying, and brandishing a firearm during a crime of violence. The convenience stores-including Circle K convenience stores and a Walgreens store-were located on Coursey Boulevard, Jefferson Highway, Nicholson Drive, and Perkins Road in Baton Rouge. The robberies occurred during a period of less than two weeks last summer. WILLIAMS used multiple weapons to commit these robberies, including firearms and pepper spray. WILLIAMS forced cashiers to fill a large duffel bag with dozens of cartons of cigarettes, worth thousands of dollars, from the stores’ inventories. WILLIAMS’ spree ultimately came to an end after he was caught fleeing from police following a vehicular chase.
Acting U.S. Attorney Corey Amundson stated, “Every city, neighborhood, block, and person in this country deserves to be safe and secure, particularly in their homes and places of work. With the help of the community and our federal, state, and local partners, we will continue to aggressively pursue violent criminals like this defendant. The defendant’s 25-year prison sentence removes a danger from our community and sends a clear message about what violent offenders should expect in the federal system. I commend the victims for their courage and assistance in ensuring that justice was done, as well as the support of Circle K and Walgreens corporate representatives. This matter is another example of the united federal, state, and local effort against violent crime."
ATF-New Orleans Special Agent-in-Charge Dana Nichols stated, “This successful investigation is directly attributed to the outstanding investigative skills of our local law enforcement partners and our ATF special agents. Their diligence in tracking down this perpetrator comes from not only a sense of duty, but from their sincere desire to make Baton Rouge a safer place. Soon it will become clear that those who participate in these heinous crimes targeting our community will have their days of freedom replaced by an iron prison cell."
This investigation was conducted by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF), the Baton Rouge Police Department, East Baton Rouge Parish Sheriff’s Department, and the Louisiana State Police. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Ryan Crosswell and Cal Leipold.
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys
