A federal jury has found 29-year-old Fredrick Buford guilty on multiple counts related to a spate of armed robberies that took place over a brief period in Memphis, Tennessee, during the summer of 2022. According to the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Western District of Tennessee, the Memphis man was convicted last Thursday, facing a stiff mandatory minimum sentence of 75 years for his crimes.
The conviction stemmed from Buford's robbery series involving local businesses, including well-known dollar stores and gas stations. On two separate occasions on May 23, Buford targeted a Dollar General on Thomas Street and a Family Dollar on Jackson Avenue. Over the course of the 25-day crime spree, Buford, armed with a firearm, carried out a total of 11 robberies and one attempted robbery. "Robberies of businesses with a firearm are especially dangerous and violent due to the high risk of death and serious bodily injury by the simple squeeze of a trigger," U.S. Attorney D. Michael Dunavant said, per the U.S. Attorney's Office.
The U.S. Attorney's statement highlighted the peril that business robberies, conducted with lethal weapons, pose not just to individuals but to the community's economic stability. Rigorously pursued by law enforcement, this case is a testament to the collective effort to bolster community safety. As part of a four-day trial culminating in Buford's conviction, the jury held him accountable for eleven counts of robbery, one count of attempted robbery, and eleven counts of using a firearm during a violent crime. Sentencing has been scheduled for March 24, 2026, with United States District Judge Mark S. Norris presiding.
Buford's apprehension and subsequent conviction were the result of collaborative work between the FBI's Nashville Field Office-Memphis Resident Agency’s Safe Streets Task Force, and the Memphis Police Department. "This guilty verdict should serve as a reminder that the FBI will not waver when it comes to protecting Tennesseans and taking dangerous criminals off the streets," said Special Agent in Charge Joseph E. Carrico of the FBI Nashville Field Office. Assistant United States Attorneys Will Crow and Eileen Kuo represented the prosecution during the trial, as cited by the U.S. Attorney's Office.
