Fort Myers Sex Offender Arrested For Pizza Shop Armed Robbery

Fort Myers, FL – United States Attorney Roger B. Handberg announces the arrest and filing of a criminal complaint charging Shadarien Lamarr Ward (22, Fort Myers) with Hobbs Act robbery and brandishing a firearm during a crime of violence. Ward appeared in federal court in Fort Myers earlier today and has been ordered to remain in federal detention pending trial in this case. If convicted, he faces up to life in prison.   

According to court documents and other public records, on the evening of September 1, 2024, Ward robbed a pizza shop near downtown Fort Myers at gunpoint, pistol-whipping an employee in the process. After grabbing the cash register drawer and approximately $700 in cash, Ward fled the area on foot. Ward was later identified by law enforcement after an extensive review of surveillance cameras in the area tracked him to a nearby motel after the robbery.

Ward, a registered sex offender, was wearing a GPS monitor at the time of the robbery as part of his state sex offender probation, which helped law enforcement retrace his steps leading up to and immediately following the robbery. Although he cut off his GPS monitor and absconded from supervision after the robbery, Ward was located and arrested by law enforcement in North Fort Myers yesterday.

A complaint is merely a formal charge that a defendant has committed one or more violations of federal criminal law, and every defendant is presumed innocent unless, and until, proven guilty.          

This case is being investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Fort Myers Police Department. It will be prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Simon Eth.

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.