Washington D.C. Man Sentenced to 15 Years in Prison for Armed Robbery, Shooting, and Failing to Register as a Sex Offender

RALEIGH, N.C. – A Washington D.C. man was sentenced on November 3, 2021 to 180 months in prison for brandishing a firearm in connection to a crime of violence, possession of firearm by a convicted felon, and failure to register as a sex offender.  On May 6, 2021, Joshua Wendell Clark, 25, pled guilty to the charges.

According to court documents and other information presented in court, investigators with the Edgecombe County Sheriff’s Office responded to a robbery call in Tarboro, North Carolina on August 24, 2020. Detectives learned that earlier that day, Clark robbed a Pizza Hut delivery man at gunpoint. When the delivery man arrived to drop off an order, Clark drew a handgun and pointed it at the victim’s head and demanded his money. Clark ultimately took $116 in U.S. currency from the delivery man. Later that same day, officers with the Tarboro Police Department responded to a shots-fired call at the 1100 block of Chapel Street, Tarboro. There they encountered multiple eyewitnesses, including the victim in that case, who advised that Clark attempted to shoot him while the victim sat in his vehicle. When Clark drew his handgun, a physical struggle ensued between the two individuals, and Clark discharged his firearm sending a round through the roof of the victim’s car. Clark then pulled the trigger multiple times after the first round, but the gun did not discharge and appeared to have jammed. Clark then ran away from the scene on foot. While on scene, officers observed a suspicious vehicle that continued to circle the area of the shooting. When officers stopped the car, they observed Clark lying down in the back seat. In Clark’s possession, officers recovered a loaded Springfield XD-40 pistol with a spent shell casing jammed in the chamber.

Prior to the events of August 24, 2020, Clark had a prior felony conviction for second degree child sex abuse from Washington, D.C. As a result, Clark was required to register as a sex offender but never did.

G. Norman Acker, III, Acting U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of North Carolina made the announcement after sentencing by U.S. District Judge James C. Dever III. The Tarboro Police Department, the Edgecombe County Sheriff’s Office, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives investigated the case and Assistant U.S. Attorney Aakash Singh  prosecuted the case.

Related court documents and information can be found on the website of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina or on PACER by searching for Case No. 4:21-CR-15-D.