Burglar who broke into homes of North Texas donut shop owners sentenced to 25 years in prison
SHERMAN (CBSNewsTexas.com) – A man who broke into the homes of donut shop owners has been sentenced to 25 years in prison.
On July 26, Tony Sullivan, 28, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to interfere with interstate commerce by robbery; aiding and abetting; conspiracy to kidnap; using, carrying, and brandishing a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence.
"Sullivan has been justly punished for subjecting innocent victims to his spree of violence between April 2019 and August 2019," said U.S. Attorney Damien M. Diggs. "Today's sentence sends a powerful message to those who use violence and fear to carry out their crimes."
The FBI began investigating a series of home invasions between April 2019 and December 2019 that targeted owners and operators of donut stores across the metroplex, according to information presented in court. At least nine robberies have been attributed to this crime spree.
The burglars would force their way into the homes and assault the home's occupants early in the morning or late in the evening. Victims were beat up with baseball bats and bound with duct tape while they were held at gunpoint.
The FBI said that due to the times of the robberies coinciding with the times the victims would have been leaving for work, they determined the suspects had conducted physical surveillance to find out where the victims lived and when they were leaving their homes.
On July 8, 2019, Euless police officers received a call reporting a person stumbling down his street with his hands bound by tape. The victim had a bleeding head wound and went to the hospital.
The victim said that when he returned home from his donut shop, there were two suspects waiting for him. He was bound and beat with a baseball bat and ordered to open a safe. The burglars left with the victim's car keys, cell phone, about $9,500 from the safe and about $900 from his wallet.
"The defendant targeted a close-knit community of successful business owners, inciting fear throughout the metroplex. His victims were stalked and terrorized, some for hours and some to the brink of death, and all have a long road of recovery ahead," said Dallas FBI Special Agent in Charge Chad Yarbrough.
Exact locations of the robberies were not disclosed.
This case was investigated by the FBI's Dallas Violent Crimes Task Force, which includes the Dallas Police Department, the Garland Police Department, the Grand Prairie Police Department, the Richardson Police Department and the Texas Department of Public Safety. Other agencies that were a part of the investigation include the Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco and Firearms, the Carrollton Police Department, the Coppell Police Department, the Dalworthington Gardens Police Department, the Euless Police Department and the Flower Mound Police Department.