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Date: 03-21-2019
Case Style:
United States of America v. Jerome Simmons, Adrian Hardy, Christopher Brinson, and Emmory Moore
Case Number: 0:17-cr-60119-KAM
Judge: Kenneth A. Marra
Court: United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida (Miami-Dade County)
Plaintiff's Attorney: Jodi L. Anton and Anita White
Defendant's Attorney: Christopher Alfred Haddad and Robert B. Meadows for Jerome Simmons
Larry Donald Murrell, Jr. and Christopher Alfred Hadda for Adrian Hardy
Description:
Miami, FL - Four Broward County Residents Convicted at Trial for Their Roles in a String of Armed Robberies – Using Firearms
One Defendant Kidnapped Four Victims
Four Broward County, Florida residents were convicted by a federal jury for their participation in a string of armed robberies using firearms. One defendant was also convicted of kidnapping four victims.
Following a four-week trial, all four defendants were convicted. Jerome Simmons, 31, of Fort Lauderdale, Florida, was convicted of two counts of Hobbs Act robbery, two counts of brandishing a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence, and one count of conspiracy to commit Hobbs Act robbery. Adrian Hardy, 34, of Fort Lauderdale, Florida, was convicted of one count of Hobbs Act robbery, two counts of brandishing a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence, one count of conspiracy to commit Hobbs Act robbery, and four counts of kidnapping. Christopher Brinson, 33, of Fort Lauderdale, Florida, was convicted of two counts of Hobbs Act robbery, one count of brandishing a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence, and one count of conspiracy to commit Hobbs Act robbery. Emmory Moore, 34, of Coral Springs, Florida, was convicted of one count of Hobbs Act robbery, one count of brandishing a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence, and one count of conspiracy to commit Hobbs Act robbery.
According to the court record, including evidence introduced at trial, on March 3, 2017, Christopher Brinson entered Class Jewelers in Deerfield Beach, Florida and engaged one of the employee’s in conversation. Approximately, ten minutes later, Moore and Simmons entered the store, dressed in wigs, makeup and women’s clothing. They held the two employees at gunpoint and demanded they open the safe. Moore and Simmons stole jewelry and other items from the store then left in a waiting vehicle.
On March 15, 2017, historical cell site information showed that cell phones owned by Simmons, Hardy, Brinson, and Moore traveled to Spring Hill, Florida. On March 6, 2017, two men dressed as women entered Lily’s Jewelry in Spring Hill and held the owner at gunpoint while stealing the store’s merchandise. One of the individuals dropped a cellular phone, which was later tied to Moore.
On March 31, 2017, historical cell site information showed that cell phones owned by Hardy, Brinson, and Moore traveled to Valdosta, Georgia. Hotel records established that Simmons checked into a local inn that evening. On April 1, 2017, three men dressed as women entered Bishop’s Jewelers in Valdosta. While holding the business owners at gunpoint, the men stole money, jewelry, and a firearm from the store’s safe. On April 6, 2017, during a traffic stop, the Fort Lauderdale Police Department recovered the firearm stolen in that robbery from the trunk of a car driven by Moore.
On April 16, 2017, three men dressed as women, left a white Jeep and entered LSO Jewelers in Port St. Lucie, Florida. Holding the owner and an employee at gunpoint, the men attempted to steal the store’s jewelry stock. An off duty state agent called the police and reported the robbery. As police arrived, the waiting white Jeep pulled away and the men inside the store fled on foot. Port Saint Lucie officers located Simmons in a nearby hospital parking lot wearing only his underwear and a sock. Brinson, who was driving the white Jeep, was located at a nearby restaurant. Hardy escaped into a nearby retirement community and held the four residents, snowbirds from Toronto, Ontario, at gunpoint for several hours, eventually forcing them to drive him from Port St. Lucie to Fort Lauderdale.
The defendants are scheduled to be sentenced by U.S. District Judge Kenneth A. Marra on June 7, 2019, beginning at 1:30 p.m. Simmons, Hardy, Brinson, and Moore face up to 20 years in prison for the robbery and robbery conspiracy charges and a consecutive mandatory minimum term of 7 years to life in prison for each conviction for brandishing a firearm during a crime of violence. Additionally, Hardy faces up to 15 years in prison for each of the kidnapping charges.
This case stems from Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program that brings together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. PSN was reinvigorated in 2017 as part of the Department’s renewed focus on targeting violent criminals, directing all U.S. Attorney’s Offices to work in partnership with federal, state, local, and tribal law enforcement and the local community to develop effective, locally-based strategies to reduce violent crime.
U.S. Attorney Fajardo Orshan commended the investigative efforts of the FBI and ATF in this matter. She thanked the Broward Sheriff’s Office, Fort Lauderdale Police Department, Port St. Lucie Police Department, Hernando County Sheriff’s Office, Valdosta Police Department, and U.S. Marshals Service for their assistance.
Charges:
18 U.S.C. 1951.F HOBBS ACT ROBBERY
(1)
18:1951(a) HOBBS ACT ROBBERY
(1s)
18:1951(a) HOBBS ACT ROBBERY
(1ss)
18:924(c)(1)(A) USE OF A FIREARM IN RELATION TO A CRIME OF VIOLENCE
(2)
18:924(c)(1)(A) and 924(c)(1)(A)(ii) USE OF A FIREARM IN RELATION TO A CRIME OF VIOLENCE
(2s)
18:924(c)(1)(A)(ii) CARRYING A FIREARM IN FURTHERANCE OF A CRIME OF VIOLENCE
(2ss)
18:1951(a)CONSPIRACY TO COMMIT HOBBS ACT ROBBERY
(3ss)
18:1951(a) HOBBS ACT ROBBERY
(4ss)
18:924(c)(1)(A)(ii) CARRYING A FIREARM IN FURTHERANCE OF A CRIME OF VIOLENCE
(5ss)
Related court documents and information can be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at www.flsd.uscourts.gov or at http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.
18 U.S.C. §1951. Interference with commerce by threats or violence
(a) Whoever in any way or degree obstructs, delays, or affects commerce or the movement of any article or commodity in commerce, by robbery or extortion or attempts or conspires so to do, or commits or threatens physical violence to any person or property in furtherance of a plan or purpose to do anything in violation of this section shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than twenty years, or both.
(b) As used in this section—
(1) The term “robbery” means the unlawful taking or obtaining of personal property from the person or in the presence of another, against his will, by means of actual or threatened force, or violence, or fear of injury, immediate or future, to his person or property, or property in his custody or possession, or the person or property of a relative or member of his family or of anyone in his company at the time of the taking or obtaining.
(2) The term “extortion” means the obtaining of property from another, with his consent, induced by wrongful use of actual or threatened force, violence, or fear, or under color of official right.
(3) The term “commerce” means commerce within the District of Columbia, or any Territory or Possession of the United States; all commerce between any point in a State, Territory, Possession, or the District of Columbia and any point outside thereof; all commerce between points within the same State through any place outside such State; and all other commerce over which the United States has jurisdiction.
Outcome: The Defendants were found guilty.
Plaintiff's Experts:
Defendant's Experts:
Comments: