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| Photo courtesy of Calvin Teo/Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 2.5)
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A federal grand jury Wednesday charged two Los Angeles County men in an indictment alleging they committed multiple armed robberies of 7-Eleven stores and another business during a six-week crime spree.
Kyle Richard Williams, 25, of Inglewood, and Colin Powell Lacey, 28, of the Hyde Park neighborhood of Los Angeles, are charged with one count of conspiracy to commit interference with commerce by robbery. Lacey is also charged with four counts of robbery while Williams is charged with two counts of robbery and one count of attempted robbery, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
The defendants, who are in federal custody, are expected to be arraigned on March 24 in Los Angeles federal court.
According to the indictment, from mid-November to Dec. 30, 2021, Williams and Lacey traveled together by car to businesses — usually 7-Eleven convenience stores — to commit the robberies. Williams allegedly entered the stores, brandished a semi-automatic handgun at employees and demanded money. Lacey allegedly waited in the vehicle parked outside the stores.
The businesses robbed during the spree included six 7-Eleven stores in the Hollywood, East Hollywood and Mid-City neighborhoods of Los Angeles as well as in West Hollywood. One smoke shop in the Mid-City area also was robbed, according to the indictment. Williams allegedly attempted to rob a 7-Eleven store in El Segundo on Dec. 30.
Each charge of interference with commerce by robbery — known as Hobbs Act crimes — carries a sentence of up to 20 years in federal prison, federal prosecutors said.
