Two California Men Convicted For Armed Robbery Of Convenience Store On Black Friday

RENO, Nev. – A federal jury convicted two men from California today for robbing a Reno convenience store at gunpoint on Black Friday, announced U.S. Attorney Dayle Elieson of the District of Nevada.

Connor Timothy Woods, 27, and Michael Miller, 31, both of Santa Rosa, California, were found guilty of one count of conspiracy to interfere with commerce by robbery, one count of interference with commerce by robbery, and one count of use of a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence. United States District Judge Howard D. McKibben presided over the four-day jury trial. Sentencing is set for June 19, 2018.

According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, Woods entered a 7-11 located at 6150 South McCarran Blvd. on November 25, 2016. He pointed a semi-automatic handgun at the store clerk and demanded money from the cash register and the slots register drawers. When the clerk went to grab the slots register drawer, he saw Woods had put the gun down on the counter. The victim attempted to grab the gun and they began to struggle. The gun fell to the floor and the victim threw the cash drawer at Woods. Woods left the store and jumped into a mini-van outside where Miller was waiting. They stole approximately $100.

A few days later, a Reno Police Department detective found the get-away vehicle parked on the side of I-80 and the mini-van was towed back to the police station. Law enforcement was able to identify Woods as a suspect in the robbery based on evidence discovered in the mini-van and from the surveillance videos. The detective searched Woods’s criminal history and found that he was in custody in Sonoma County, California, on an unrelated charge. In an interview with the detective, Woods stated, “I admit to the 7-11 robbery. I admit to it, there that’s all you need.”

The maximum statutory penalty is 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine for the conspiracy to interfere with commerce by robbery and interference with commerce by robbery change, and a mandatory minimum penalty of seven years consecutive to the robbery charge.

The investigation was conducted by the Reno Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives with the assistance of the Washoe County Sheriff’s Office. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Megan Rachow and James E. Keller.

###