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A Delaware County court sentenced an Indianapolis man to 16 years in prison for his role in a September 2024 armed robbery.
Delaware Circuit Court Judge Judi Calhoun sentenced James Johnson, 37, for his involvement in the armed robbery of a financial loan store in Muncie last year.
According to an announcement from the Delaware County Prosecutor’s Office, Johnson had four prior convictions of robbery or armed robbery before this offense.
“This maximum sentence should send a clear message to career criminals who choose to commit crime in Delaware County: this Prosecutor’s Office is standing firm in our commitment to hold repeat offenders accountable and close the revolving door to the jail,” said Delaware County Prosecutor Eric Hoffman in a statement.
According to court documents, officers with the Muncie Police Department were dispatched to a local Check into Cash on Sept. 13, 2024, in reference to an armed robbery.
According to witnesses, the masked suspect, wearing a grey hooded jacket and blue latex gloves, had entered the store and threatened several people with a handgun, ordering them to the ground.
The suspect then walked around the counter and took a cash drawer that held $2,474.63, and then fled the scene.
Officers received information that the suspect was driving a dark blue Chevrolet Trailblazer, which had also been reported earlier that morning by the Ball State University Police Department in relation to a stolen license plate.
After searching through various security cameras, officers spotted the vehicle numerous times, and they discovered its original plate numbers, which were then traced back to Johnson.
According to an affidavit, Johnson was currently on federal parole for armed robbery.
According to Johnson’s parole officer, he had security footage of Johnson purchasing blue latex gloves, and he said that he had recently seen a dark blue SUV at Johnson’s residence.
The FBI Safe Street Task Force tracked the vehicle to an Indianapolis grocery store on the same day as the robbery, where they arrested Johnson after he exited the store.
Through various search warrants of Johnson’s residence and vehicle, law enforcement officers discovered a .9 millimeter handgun, one blue rubber gardening style glove and a gray zip-up sweatshirt, along with other items that matched the suspect’s description.
Johnson was charged with armed robbery, possession of a handgun by a serious violent felon and pointing a firearm.
Last month, Johnson pled guilty to armed robbery—a Level 3 Felony punishable by three to 16 years in prison and up to a $10,000 fine.
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