ST. LOUIS – A federal grand jury indicted a St. Louis County man Thursday for allegedly robbing a convenience store at gunpoint earlier this year.
Prosecutors with the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Missouri said Richard Barber, 51, used a gun to rob a Gas Mart in north St. Louis on Feb. 11, 2023.
According to court documents, Barber walked into the store, took beer from a fridge, and then pulled a pistol on the clerk before ordering the employee to empty the cash register.
Two days later, Barber wrecked his car and police recovered a pistol resembling the one used in the robbery. Police also reviewed security footage from the store and connected Barber to the crime.
Barber was charged with felony robbery, possession and brandishing a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence, and being a felon in possession of a firearm.
If convicted, Barber faces up to 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine on the robbery charge. The brandishing charge carries a term of at least seven years in prison. And being a felon in possession could bring a 15-year sentence.
Prosecutors said Barber was already on supervised release at the time of the robbery. He’d previously been sentenced in 2014 to 100 months in federal prison for being a felon in possession.
At present, Barber is facing charges on this same incident in St. Louis County Circuit Court.
