GREENVILLE - The United States Attorney for the Eastern District of North Carolina, Robert J. Higdon, Jr., announced that today in federal court, Senior United States District Judge Malcolm J. Howard sentenced DARRICUS DIQUEL SUGGS, 23, of Tarboro, North Carolina to 97 months of imprisonment followed by 3 years of supervised release.
SUGGS was named in a two-count Indictment on Nov. 2, 2017. On December 7, 2017, SUGGS pled guilty to one-count of Hobbs Act Robbery and Aiding and Abetting and one-count of Felon in Possession of a Firearm.
On Nov. 21, 2016, SUGGS and James Leroy Everette, who previously pled guilty on Jan. 11, 2018, entered the Speedway gas station located in Rocky Mount, North Carolina, wearing gloves and concealing their faces with shirts or a ski mask. Everette immediately leapt over the counter and instructed the victim clerk to open the cash register, at which time he grabbed the cash out of the register. The victim clerk advised investigators that one of the robbers threatened to “blow her head off" if she did not comply. The robbers then fled the scene with $382 in U.S. currency, which they ultimately divided among themselves.
Immediately after the aforementioned robbery, SUGGS and his accomplice drove to Wendell, North Carolina, where they broke into Perry’s Gun Shop. Upon arrival at the business, Sharpe used a cinder block to break through the glass door of the business. SUGGS and Everette then entered the business. SUGGS and Everette shattered a display case and stole 9 Smith and Wesson handguns before fleeing the scene. Within hours of the burglary, Everette was captured by law enforcement, and identified SUGGS as his accomplice in the Speedway robbery and burglary of Perry’s Gun Shop.
On Nov. 22, 2016, investigators conducted a search of SUGGS’ residence and recovered the firearms stolen from Perry’s Gun Shop. The firearms, along with assorted 9mm and.380 caliber ammunition, were found in SUGGS’ bedroom. SUGGS was taken into custody and subsequently provided a statement to authorities during which he acknowledged his involvement in the robbery of Speedway. However, SUGGS denied entering Perry’s Gun Shop and maintained that he only “peeked" inside the store.
In conclusion, SUGGS is responsible for robbing a gas station and stealing 9 firearms from a gun shop. During the robbery of the Speedway gas station, the defendant and his accomplice stole $382 and threatened the victim clerk with death if she did not comply.
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. Attorney General Jeff Sessions reinvigorated PSN in 2017 as part of the Department’s renewed focus on targeting violent criminals, directing all U.S. Attorney’s Offices to work in partnership with federal, state, local, and tribal law enforcement and the local community to develop effective, locally-based strategies to reduce violent crime.
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, the Rocky Mount Police Department and the Wendell Police Department conducted the criminal investigation of this case. Assistant United States Attorney James J. Kurosad handled the prosecution of this case for the government.
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys
