Eugene Campbell IV, a 35-year-old resident of Jacksonville, has pleaded guilty to charges related to two armed robberies at pizza restaurants in Jacksonville. The plea includes Hobbs Act robbery and discharging a firearm during a crime of violence. U.S. Attorney Gregory W. Kehoe announced the plea, stating that Campbell faces a minimum sentence of 20 years in federal prison, with the possibility of up to two life terms plus an additional 20 years. A sentencing date has not yet been scheduled.
According to court documents, on August 4, 2025, Campbell entered a pizza restaurant in Jacksonville and fired a sawed-off rifle into the ceiling before demanding money from employees at gunpoint. He left the scene with about $500. The following day, he committed a similar robbery at another pizza restaurant in Jacksonville, firing his weapon into the wall and escaping with approximately $700.
Ballistics analysis linked shell casings found at both crime scenes to the same firearm used in another incident in St. Johns County. Investigators connected Campbell to the robberies by interviewing his associates and reviewing surveillance footage from both victims and nearby businesses. Officers from the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office arrested Campbell on August 6, 2025; he later admitted responsibility for the crimes.
The investigation involved multiple agencies including the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office, and St. Johns County Sheriff’s Office. Assistant United States Attorney David B. Mesrobian is prosecuting the case.
This prosecution falls under Operation Take Back America—a Department of Justice initiative focused on combating illegal immigration, dismantling cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and addressing violent crime through coordinated efforts involving Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETFs) and Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN).
