A 28-year-old Baltimore man is facing federal charges after prosecutors say he pointed a gun at two employees during an armed robbery at a prepaid wireless cellphone store in East Baltimore, then made off with thousands of dollars in merchandise. Keith Lewis was indicted by a federal grand jury on three counts tied to the July 10 holdup, and he now faces a potential sentence stretching into decades if convicted.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Maryland announced the indictment on Wednesday, according to WBFF/Fox Baltimore. Lewis was indicted in connection with the armed robbery of the cellphone store, per the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Maryland.
Three Federal Counts Stem From the July Robbery
The grand jury charged Lewis with one count of interference with commerce by threats or violence, one count of using, carrying, and brandishing a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence, and one count of possession of a firearm and ammunition by a prohibited person, the station’s report states. Lewis is prohibited from possessing a firearm or ammunition because of prior convictions, per the same account.
Investigators say Lewis pointed a gun at two employees during the robbery and stole several thousand dollars’ worth of merchandise from the store, which was targeted on July 10 in East Baltimore. Baltimore Police Department officers later arrested Lewis and recovered a semiautomatic pistol that had been reported stolen, along with some of the merchandise taken from the wireless store, the outlet notes. That recovered pistol was loaded with seven rounds of ammunition.
Potential Penalties Under Federal Law
If convicted, Lewis faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in federal prison, according to the report. That ceiling tracks with the federal statute covering interference with commerce by threats or violence, which the Office of the Law Revision Counsel, U.S. Code states allows for imprisonment of not more than 20 years. The separate firearm charge carries its own exposure: under 18 U.S.C. § 924, a brandished firearm during a crime of violence triggers a mandatory minimum sentence of not less than seven years, according to the same federal code source.
As with any federal indictment, the charges against Lewis are allegations, not findings of guilt. People charged by indictment are presumed innocent until proven guilty at a later criminal proceeding, the station’s report emphasizes.
Context on Baltimore’s Robbery Numbers
The case surfaces amid broader citywide data on violent crime trends. As of late June, Baltimore City reported that total robberies were down 13% compared to the same point the previous year, according to a statement from Baltimore City. That citywide figure covers robberies broadly and does not speak specifically to cellphone-store holdups like the one alleged against Lewis.
