Two Sentenced In AT&T Store Robbery Spree: Authorities

A Hartford resident and a Middletown resident involved in a spree of AT&T store robberies, including ones in Canton and Newington, were sentenced to prison this week.

Vanessa Roberts Avery, U.S. Attorney for Connecticut, announced Thursday that two participants in a spree of violent robberies of AT&T stores in Connecticut and western Massachusetts were sentenced Wednesday by U.S. District Judge Stefan R. Underhill in Bridgeport.

Shaquille Raymond, 25, of Hartford was sentenced to six years of imprisonment and five years of supervised release.

In addition, Saviana Bourne, 25, of Middletown, was sentenced to six and a half years of imprisonment and three years of supervised release.

According to court documents and statements made in court, in 2021, Raymond, Alex Josephs, Ronaldo Smith and Deshawn Baugh committed several violent armed robberies of AT&T stores in Connecticut and western Massachusetts.

Authorities said the perpetrators entered the stores shortly before closing, pointed weapons at employees, and, at times, pistol-whipped, dragged and shoved employees toward the back inventory room.

They then held the employees at gunpoint while loading large bags with cell phones and other electronics, Avery said.

The group stole hundreds of thousands of dollars in merchandise.

Bourne, who worked at AT&T stores, helped plan the robberies, served as a getaway driver and coordinated the sale of the stolen merchandise, according to Avery.

The investigation revealed that Raymond, Josephs and Smith robbed AT&T stores in Newington on Jan. 29, 2021, and Enfield on Feb. 24, 2021.

Baugh then joined the conspiracy and together they 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.

On June 6, 2021, Raymond and his associates, armed with a semiautomatic pistol, two revolvers, and a semiautomatic rifle, robbed an AT&T store in West Springfield, Mass.

After the robbery, they fled in a vehicle driven by Bourne, who led police on a high-speed chase that ended when their vehicle collided with a Massachusetts State Police cruiser.

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

Underhill ordered Raymond and Bourne to pay restitution of $298,074, which reflects the losses from the Newington, Enfield and Canton robberies.

The property stolen in the West Springfield robbery was recovered.

Raymond and Bourne have been detained since their arrests.

On Oct. 28, 2022, Raymond pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit Hobbs Act robbery and one count of brandishing a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence.

On Nov. 30, 2021, Bourne pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit Hobbs Act robbery, four counts of Hobbs Act robbery and two counts of attempted Hobbs Act robbery.

Josephs, Smith and Baugh also pleaded guilty.

On March 1, Baugh was sentenced to nine years of imprisonment and was ordered to pay restitution of $124,842, which reflects the loss from the Canton robbery.

Josephs and Smith await sentencing.

The case was investigated by the FBI’s Connecticut Violent Crimes Task Force with the assistance of the Massachusetts State Police and the Newington, Enfield, Canton, Torrington, Glastonbury, and West Springfield Police Departments. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert S. Ruff.