Man Gets Prison Time For AT&T Store Spree That Included Glastonbury

GLASTONBURY, CT — A 20-year-old Hartford man has been given a nine-year prison sentence in connection with violent incidents at AT&T stores in Glastonbury and other locations in Connecticut and western Massachusetts.

Vanessa Roberts Avery, United States attorney for the District of Connecticut, said that Deshawn Baugh was sentenced Wednesday by U.S. District Judge Stefan R. Underhill in Bridgeport to 108 months in prison, followed by three years of supervised release for the capers.

According to court documents and statements made in court, in 2021, Baugh, Alex Josephs, Ronaldo Smith and Shaquille Raymond were involved in several armed robberies and robbery attempts at the AT&T stores. They typically entered the stores shortly before closing, pointed weapons at employees, and, at times, pistol-whipped, dragged and shoved employees toward the back inventory room, use records show.

The men then held the employees at gunpoint while loading large bags with cell phones and other electronics, according to case records.

The group stole hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of merchandise in the robbery spree, Avery said.

A fifth co-conspirator, Saviana Bourne, helped plan the robberies, served as a getaway driver, and coordinated the sale of the stolen merchandise, Avery said.

According to case records, investigators determined that Baugh’s associates robbed AT&T stores in Newington on Jan. 29, 2021, and in Enfield on Feb. 24, 2021. Baugh then joined the fray and he and his associates robbed an AT&T store in Canton on April 15, 2021, and attempted to rob stores in Torrington and Glastonbury in May 2021, but were locked out of the stores, according to case records.

On June 6, 2021, Baugh and his associates, armed with a semiautomatic pistol, two revolvers, and a semiautomatic rifle, robbed an AT&T store in West Springfield, MA, according to case records. After the robbery, they fled in a vehicle driven by Bourne and led police on a high-speed chase that ended when their vehicle collided with a Massachusetts State Police cruiser, case records show.

Baugh, Josephs, Smith, Raymond and Bourne were arrested, and a search of the vehicle uncovered more than $150,000 in stolen merchandise, as well as the firearms used during the robbery.

Baugh has been detained since his arrest. On Nov. 29, 2022, he entered a guilty plea to one count of Hobbs Act robbery and one count of brandishing a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence.

Josephs, Smith, Raymond and Bourne have pleaded guilty and await sentencing.

Judge Underhill ordered Baugh to pay restitution of $124,842.45, which reflects the loss from the Canton robbery, Avery said.