For Use of Firearms During Crimes of Violence
Hammond, IN-(ENEWSPF)- Daniel Smith, 29 years old, of Chicago, Illinois, was sentenced by United States District Court Chief Judge Jon E. DeGuilio on his plea of guilty to using and carrying a firearm during a robbery and for brandishing a firearm during a second robbery, announced United States Attorney Clifford D. Johnson.
Smith was sentenced to 168 months in prison, 2 years of supervised release and ordered to pay $14,402.84 in restitution.
According to documents in the case, on January 24, 2020, Smith robbed a cellular store located in Hammond, Indiana, while armed with a firearm. During the robbery, Smith held employees at gunpoint, and ordered them to fill up a duffel bag with cellular phones which he took. Seven days later, on January 31, 2020, Smith robbed another cellular store, this one located in Merrillville, Indiana, while armed with a firearm. During this robbery, Smith brandished a firearm and demanded cash and cellular phones from the employees before exiting the store.
Smith’ criminal history revealed that he has prior felony convictions for aggravated vehicular hijacking with a weapon, armed robbery, and auto theft.
This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Gang Response Team and the Hammond Police Department with assistance from the Merrillville, Indiana and Hazel Crest, Illinois Police Departments. This case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Caitlin M. Padula.
This case was prosecuted as part of the joint federal, state, and local Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) Program, the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts. PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime. Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.