Las Vegas, Nevada - A Las Vegas man, Brian Wright, who was convicted for his role in planning and participating in the armed robbery of two jewelry stores while he was on federal supervised release for a conviction related to unlawful possession of a firearm, was sentenced Monday to 328 months in federal prison, announced U.S. Attorney Nicholas A. Trutanich for the District of Nevada. In a separate case, Wright was previously sentenced to 92 months in prison after a jury convicted him of Assault on a Federal Officer. The Court ordered the 328-month sentence in this case to run consecutive to his sentence in the assault case for a total sentence of 35 years in federal prison.
Brian Wright, 34, was convicted of two counts of conspiracy to interfere with commerce by robbery, two counts of interference with commerce by robbery, and two counts of brandishing a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence. In addition to the incarceration, U.S. District Judge Jennifer A. Dorsey sentenced him to three years of supervised release concurrent on each count. Wright has been previously convicted in Nevada of robbery with a deadly weapon, conspiracy to commit robbery, and felon in possession of a firearm, and he has multiple parole and supervised release violations.
“Every time law enforcement takes a gun out of the hands of a violent criminal we are potentially saving lives,” said U.S. Attorney Trutanich. “This significant sentence is the result of our continued efforts to keep the community safe from dangerous repeat offenders by working together with our local and federal law enforcement partners.”
During the six-day trial, the government proved that Wright planned and recruited two gunmen and several getaway drivers to rob a jewelry store located at N. Rainbow Blvd in northwest Las Vegas in January, 2017. On January 3, 2017, the two gunmen, co-conspirators Deandre Nakita Brown and Aquail Harris, entered the jewelry store pointing their firearms at employees and customers, including two young children, forcing them to their knees. Harris physically removed the security guard’s firearm and the robbers took the firearm along with the stolen jewelry. The two gunmen delivered the stolen jewelry and watches valued at over $850,000 to the getaway vehicle driven by two additional co-conspirators, Kendareen Hudson and Safiyyah Christopher. Wright, using a police radio scanner app on his phone, relayed information to his co-conspirators to avoid apprehension. However, shortly following the robbery Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department officers found and arrested Hudson and Christopher and recovered the stolen merchandise.
Ten days later, Wright recruited co-conspirators Carl Whitley and Deandre Brown to help him rob a jewelry store located at W. Charleston Blvd in Boca Park. Wright provided a gun to Brown to use in the robbery. On January 13, Brown entered the jewelry store pointing a gun at employees and directing them to fill garbage bags with jewelry and watches. Approximately $765,000 worth of jewelry was taken. Brown fled in a getaway vehicle driven by co-conspirator Randy Jerousek. Brown ultimately abandoned the vehicle and the jewelry in the backseat when the it became clear that police were searching for the getaway vehicle. This vehicle driven by co-conspirator Randy Jerousek was quickly located at a casino with the stolen merchandise in it. The co-conspirators were arrested soon thereafter.
Brown, Harris, and Wright met and planned the robberies while each of them were serving on federal supervised release.
Co-defendants Harris, Christopher, Hudson, Jerousek, Whitley, and Brown all pleaded guilty for their involvement in the armed robberies.
The case was investigated by the FBI Safe Streets Task Force and the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Alexandra Michael, Nadia Ahmed, and Lisa Cartier Giroux prosecuted the case.
