Man Charged In Inver Grove Heights Armed Robbery Sentenced To 15 Years
INVER GROVE HEIGHTS, Minn. (WCCO) -- The man who was charged with robbing an Inver Grove Heights cellphone store has been sentenced to 15 years in prison.
Thrity-four-year-old Jamaal Mays pleaded guilty to the 2017 armed robbery in September of last year. His co-defendant, Jaquon Moman, 26, also pleaded guilty and was sentenced to six years in prison in January.
According to Mays' guilty plea and other documents filed in court, the men entered a Verizon Wireless store in Inver Grove Heights on Aug. 17, 2017. With a .45 caliber semi-automatic pistol, they waited for customers to leave the store before holding a store employee at gunpoint while demanding money and cellphones.
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Police said the employee shot Mays in self-defense while pretending to comply, police said, and Mays shot his firearm as well. A stray bullet grazed another worker in an adjacent restaurant during the exchange.
Both men were each convicted of one count of robbery and one count of discharging a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence.
"These defendants showed complete disregard for human life when they made the decision to commit armed robbery of a business establishment located in a busy suburban retail area," United States Attorney Erica MacDonald said. "Such brazen acts of violence will not be tolerated in our communities and we, along with our law enforcement partners, are committing all necessary resources to bringing violent criminals to justice."
