LOS ANGELES – A federal grand jury today charged two Los Angeles County men in an eight-count indictment alleging they committed multiple armed robberies of 7-Eleven stores and another business in Los Angeles County during a six-week crime spree.
Kyle Richard Williams, 25, of Inglewood and Colin Powell Lacey, 28, of the Hyde Park neighborhood of Los Angeles, are charged with one count of conspiracy to commit interference with commerce by robbery (Hobbs Act). Lacey is also charged with four counts of robbery while Williams is charged with two counts of robbery and one count of attempted robbery.
The defendants, who are in federal custody, are expected to be arraigned on March 24 in United States District Court.
According to the indictment, from mid-November to December 30, 2021, Williams and Lacey traveled together by car to businesses – usually 7-Eleven convenience stores – to commit armed robberies. Williams allegedly entered the stores, brandished a semi-automatic handgun at employees, and demanded money. Meanwhile, Lacey waited in the vehicle parked outside the stores. Williams and Lacey allegedly would then flee the area following the armed robbery.
The businesses robbed during the spree included six 7-Eleven stores located in the Hollywood, East Hollywood and Mid-City neighborhoods of Los Angeles as well as in West Hollywood. One smoke shop in the Mid-City area also was robbed, according to the indictment. Williams allegedly attempted to rob a 7-Eleven store in El Segundo on December 30, 2021.
An indictment contains allegations that a defendant has committed a crime. Every defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proved guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
Each charge of Hobbs Act robbery carries a statutory maximum penalty of 20 years in federal prison.
The FBI, the Los Angeles Police Department’s Robbery-Homicide Division, and the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department’s Major Crimes Bureau Metro Detail investigated this matter.
Assistant United States Attorneys Jeffrey M. Chemerinsky and Jeremiah M. Levine of the Violent and Organized Crime Section are prosecuting this case.