U.S. District Judge Rodney W. Sippel on Friday sentenced a convicted felon from Jefferson County, Missouri who was caught twice with guns to seven years, four months in prison.
The charges against Kentrez Robinson, now 31, of Festus, stem from two incidents in 2020.
On Aug. 11, 2020, St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department surveillance cameras alerted officers that a silver Pontiac Solstice was driving down Natural Bridge Avenue bearing a license plate belonging to a Chevy truck. Officers were also aware that a silver Pontiac Solstice had recently been reported stolen.
Detectives found the Solstice, parked and unoccupied, in the 1100 block of St. Louis Avenue, and then saw Robinson, who is a convicted felon, removing items from the car. Robinson had a loaded 9mm Beretta pistol in his pocket, along with fentanyl in two plastic bags.
On Oct. 5, 2020, a man reported being robbed of a gun and money in the parking lot of a market in the 3900 block of South Broadway. The vehicle driven by the robber was spotted by a license plate recognition camera near Page Boulevard and Walton Avenue and officers tried to pull it over. Robinson, who was driving, sped away, ignoring stop signs and traffic signals, and eventually reached speeds exceeding 100 m.p.h. on Interstate 70. After he left the interstate, Robinson’s vehicle hit a curb, flattening a front tire. But he kept going onto Interstate 55. Police were later able to disable the vehicle with a tire deflation device in the 5100 block of Vermont Avenue. Robinson got out and ran, climbing over at least two fences before he was arrested. He was caught with a satchel carrying the stolen gun and another pistol, as well as fentanyl.
Robinson pleaded guilty in December to two felony counts of being a felon in possession of a firearm.
The case was investigated by the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jennifer Szczucinski prosecuted the case.
