ALEXANDRIA, Va. – Tasheik Ashanti Champean, 45, of Suitland, Md., has been indicted by a federal grand jury for his alleged role in the attempted armed robbery and murder of a man at a residence in the Centreville area of Fairfax County, Va. 

Neil H. MacBride, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, and Colonel David Rohrer, Fairfax County Chief of Police, made the announcement. 

Champean was indicted on May 24, 2012, of conspiracy to commit Hobbs Act robbery, use of a firearm in a crime of violence causing death, and possession of ammunition by a prohibited person. If convicted, Champean faces a maximum penalty of life in prison or death.

According to the indictment and other court records, Champean allegedly conspired with Reynard Lazaro Prather and an unnamed individual to rob the owner of a check-cashing facility at gunpoint at the store owner=s residence in Centreville, where the conspirators believed the target kept the store=s proceeds.

On May 17, 2010, Champean and Prather allegedly drove from Maryland to a shopping center in Virginia, where a third co-conspirator picked them up and dropped them off at the target=s residence. Court records allege that Champean was armed with a semi-automatic pistol and entered the target=s garage with his partner – who was also armed with a semi-automatic pistol – to await the target=s arrival. Champean and Prather are accused of confronting Jose Cardona, an employee of the owner, and the owner=s son, when they arrived at the residence. During the struggle, court documents allege, Cardona was shot and killed by one of the two men.

On Feb. 22, 2012, Prather pleaded guilty in to conspiracy to commit Hobbs Act robbery, use of a firearm in a crime of violence, and use of a firearm in a crime of violence causing death.  He is scheduled to be sentenced on June 1, 2012, by U.S. District Judge Anthony J. Trenga.

This case was investigated by the Fairfax County Police Department.  Assistant United States Attorneys Michael Rich and Zachary Terwilliger are prosecuting the case on behalf of the United States.

Criminal indictments are only charges and not evidence of guilt.  A defendant is presumed to be innocent until and unless proven guilty.

A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Virginia at http://www.justice.gov/usao/vae.  Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia at http://www.vaed.uscourts.gov or on https://pcl.uscourts.gov.

 

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