Cincinnati police are asking the public for help finding a 36-year-old man accused in two February armed robberies, one involving a gun at a McDonald's and another involving a knife at a clothing store. Johnny Gibson faces two counts of first-degree felony aggravated robbery tied to the alleged incidents, reported four days apart, one in East Price Hill and the other in Over-the-Rhine.
According to WKRC, Gibson is accused of entering the McDonald's at 3738 Warsaw Ave. in East Price Hill, displaying a firearm, pushing a cashier out of the way, and taking cash from the register. The station reports a McDonald's employee later identified Gibson in a photo lineup, and an affidavit was filed in Hamilton County Municipal Court laying out the allegations.
A Second Robbery Across Town
Gibson is also accused of using a knife to force a clerk at Rivertown Inkery and Apparel, located at 1808 Race St. in Over-the-Rhine, to open the register before taking cash and fleeing, per the station's report. Rivertown Inkery is a Cincinnati vintage-inspired clothing brand with its Over-the-Rhine storefront and a second Cincinnati location on Madison Road, according to Cincinnati Magazine.
Investigators got an unusual break in identifying Gibson: his own parole officer recognized him from surveillance video, the same account notes. Post-release control in Ohio is managed by the Adult Parole Authority, a division within the Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction that monitored more than 20,000 released felony offenders statewide as of 2019, according to the Office of Governor Mike DeWine.
Warrants Issued Months Before Public Appeal
Warrants for Gibson were issued in March, the outlet reports, meaning police have been searching for him for roughly six months before this week's public appeal for help. Gibson is described as a white man standing 5 feet 11 inches tall and weighing about 150 pounds, with a last known address on Faehr Street in South Fairmount.
The aggravated robbery charges Gibson faces are first-degree felonies. Under Section 2911.01 of the Ohio Revised Code, that offense carries a statutory penalty of 3 to 11 years in prison and potential court fines of up to $20,000 per count, according to FindLaw. Section 2941.145 of the Ohio Revised Code provides a three-year prison term when a firearm specification is included in the charging instrument, per the Ohio Legislative Service Commission.
How to Submit a Tip
Cincinnati Police District 3 absorbed Camp Washington and other West Side communities when the city dissolved Police District 5 in late 2023, according to the earlier reporting on a Camp Washington theft. Anyone with information can submit an anonymous tip through Crime Stoppers at 513-352-3040 or through P3Tips.
Gibson's case follows another West Side commercial robbery investigation this month, in which a 26-year-old suspect was charged in a gunpoint robbery at a Cheviot United Dairy Farmers store, with police crediting store surveillance cameras for aiding that arrest.
