Four men were each sentenced to over 10 years in prison for armed robberies of seven convenience stores and a towing company that they committed over a two-week period last year.
Last week, U.S. District Judge Paul G. Byron of the Middle District of Florida issued the sentences to four individuals, who each pled guilty at various points over the past year.
According to court records, the first robbery occurred at TL Towing, which is located at 605 Ferguson Drive in Orlando, on August 26, 2022 at approximately 3:21 a.m. An employee of the business was approached by DaMarris Jean Saint-Juste, 20, Marcus Terrell Ellington, Jr., 22, and Nelson Ross Henderson, 21. The group robbed the employee at gunpoint and stole $3,000 in cash from inside the office.
The second robbery occurred less than one hour later, just after 4 a.m., at a 7-Eleven located at 1439 West Orange Blossom Trail in Apopka. During that incident, Saint-Juste, Ellington, and Henderson all robbed a store clerk at gunpoint. They stole approximately $200, an iPhone, and tobacco products were stolen during the robbery.
The third robbery occurred a few days later on August 30, 2022. At approximately 4:06 a.m., Saint-Juste, Ellington, and Rodreakas Deshay Smith, 19, entered the 7-Eleven located at 1117 East Semoran Boulevard in Orlando. The men stole approximately $270 from two registers.
Just over an hour after the third robbery, a fourth robbery was perpetrated at around 5:28 a.m. at the Circle K located at 2202 West McCormick Road in Apopka. Saint-Juste, Ellington and Smith entered the store wearing similar clothing and stole $70 to $90 in cash from the cash register, as well as a roll of $50-lottery tickets and several tobacco products. During their visit, the group unsuccessfully attempted to access the store’s safe.
The next day, Saint-Juste, Ellington and Henderson, as well as a juvenile who was prosecuted separately, entered the 7-Eleven located at 5492 International Drive in Orlando at approximately 4:46 a.m. The armed men stole cash from the registers and lottery scratch-off tickets.
The last three robberies were committed by Saint-Juste and Ellington. In each case, the men used firearms to steal cash, tobacco, and lottery tickets at various gas stations across Kissimmee and Leesburg.
Authorities say that Saint-Juste and Ellington were involved in all eight robberies, while Henderson was involved in three and Smith was involved in two.
Saint-Juste was sentenced to 17 years and 10 months in prison, Ellington, Jr. was sentenced to 16 years, Henderson was sentenced to 15 years and 6 months, and Smith, Jr. was sentenced to 10 years and 6 months in federal prison.
The cases were investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation with assistance from a half dozen local law enforcement agencies, including the Orlando Police Department, Orange County Sheriff’s Office, Apopka Police Department, Osceola County Sheriff’s Office, Kissimmee Police Department, and Leesburg Police Department.