MINEOLA, N.Y. – Acting Nassau County District Attorney Madeline Singas announced that a Nassau jury found a Queens man guilty on all charges related to a December 2013 spree, in which he robbed a Hempstead gas station and attempted to rob a Roosevelt deli in one evening.
John Hayes, 44, of Queens, was found guilty today on charges of:
• Robbery in the 1st Degree (a B violent felony)
• Robbery in the 2nd Degree (a C violent felony)
• Attempted Robbery in the 1st Degree (a C violent felony)
• Attempted Robbery in the 2nd Degree (a D violent felony)
• Criminal Possession of a Weapon in the 2nd Degree ( a C violent felony)
The jury returned the verdict after less than three hours of deliberations.
“The defendant terrorized the employees and patrons of two local businesses when he robbed a deli and gas station within hours of each other,” Acting DA Singas said. “Thanks to the hard work of the Hempstead and the Nassau County Police departments and our trial prosecutors, a jury quickly convicted him today, and this defendant will be held accountable for his crimes.”
The defendant faces up to 25 years to life in prison on the top count. He is due back in court for sentencing before Supreme Court Justice William Donnino on December 11.
Acting DA Singas said that on December 4, 2013, Hayes and another individual robbed a Citgo Gas Station in Hempstead with a black revolver. The defendant was observed fleeing the scene in a U-Haul van and was stopped shortly after the robbery by Hempstead Police. Hayes and a codefendant were placed into custody. Another man allegedly fled the van and was in possession of a handgun when he was arrested nearby.
Hempstead police officers, working with detectives from the Nassau County Police Department Robbery Squad, 1st Squad and 3rd Squad, connected the defendants to an earlier attempted robbery of a deli in Roosevelt.
The defendant stole approximately $100 from the gas station.
Assistant District Attorney Ania Pulaski of Acting DA Singas’ Major Offense Bureau is prosecuting the case. Hayes is represented by Dennis Kelly, Esq.