Mpls Man Accused Of Multiple Armed Robberies

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) – A 26-year-old Minneapolis man was indicted Wednesday in federal court for allegedly robbing three metro convenience stores and the same Jimmy John's sandwich shop twice with a sawed-off shotgun, the Justice Department said.

Derrel Johon Pruitt is charged with five counts of robbery, pursuant to the Hobbs Act; five counts of gun possession in a violent crime; and one count of possessing an unregistered firearm.

The charges stem from robberies that happened in 2011. In October of that year, Pruitt allegedly robbed a Quick Stop in South St. Paul and a Stop N' Go in Minneapolis. In November, he allegedly robbed a Jimmy John's in Minneapolis and a Holiday store in Inver Grove Heights. In December, he allegedly went back to the same Jimmy John's shop and robbed it again.

Minneapolis police arrested Pruitt on Dec. 6, 2011 -- the day after he allegedly robbed the Jimmy John's for the second time. During the arrest, an officer shot Pruitt after he jumped out of a car and ran, dropping a shotgun in the middle of the action.

He was treated after being shot, and then jailed.

If convicted, Pruitt faces a potential maximum penalty of 20 years in federal prison on each violation of the Hobbs act, 10 years for possessing an unregistered firearm, and a mandatory minimum of seven years on each count of possessing a gun in a violent crime, the Justice Department said.