Hampton Man Convicted Of Armed Robbery

NEWPORT NEWS, Va. –Melvin O. Rushing, Jr., 24, of Hampton, Va., has been convicted by a federal jury of attempting to rob a McDonald’s, forcing the restaurant’s employees into a freezer at gunpoint before fleeing the scene.

            Neil H. MacBride, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia; James Newman, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives’ (ATF) Washington Field Division; and Thomas Townsend, Chief of the Hampton Police Division, made the announcement after the verdict was accepted by United States District Judge Arenda Wright Allen.

            Rushing was convicted on Feb. 7, 2013, of conspiracy and robbery, which both carry a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison, as well as possession of a firearm in connection with a crime of violence, which carries a mandatory minimum of seven years and a maximum of life in prison. Sentencing is scheduled for May 10, 2013.

            According to court records and evidence at trial, Rushing and an accomplice robbed the Hampton McDonald’s restaurant on May 6, 2009. Rushing brandished a firearm before forcing the employees into a refrigerator freezer, and he and his accomplice fled on foot, shedding identifying clothing as they ran.     

            This case was investigated by the ATF’s Washington Field Division and the Hampton Police Division.  Assistant United States Attorney Robert E. Bradenham, II and Special Assistant United States Attorney Teresa A. Wallbaum from the Criminal Division’s Human Rights and Special Prosecutions Section are prosecuting the case on behalf of the United States.

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.