TAMPA, Fla. – A federal jury has handed down a guilty verdict for a Plant City man accused of a brutal 2020 gas station robbery where the clerk was shot in the face despite cooperating with the gunman’s demands.
United States Attorney Gregory W. Kehoe announced that Emarjai Walker, 29, was found guilty of interference with commerce by robbery and discharging a firearm during a violent felony. The conviction carries a maximum penalty of life in federal prison.
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The violent encounter occurred just before midnight on April 5, 2020, at a gas station on James Redman Parkway in Plant City. According to evidence presented at trial, Walker entered the store masked and disguised, demanding cash. The clerk complied, opening the register, but Walker opened fire anyway, striking the employee in the face.
Prosecutors said that as the victim lay bleeding on the floor, Walker fired a second round that narrowly missed the clerk’s head. Walker then fled the scene, leaving the employee for dead. A customer discovered the wounded clerk about 10 minutes later.
Despite the mask, the victim’s familiarity with Walker proved critical to the case. From his hospital bed days later, the clerk was able to identify Walker as the shooter, telling investigators he recognized Walker’s specific mannerisms from previous visits to the store.
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Investigators later uncovered digital and physical evidence linking Walker to the crime. Following the shooting, Walker reportedly conducted extensive media research regarding the incident and attempted to sell a .38 caliber handgun the very next day.
The investigation was a collaborative effort involving the Plant City Police Department, the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office, the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, the Tampa Police Department, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.
Assistant United States Attorneys Jim Preston and Brooke Padgett are prosecuting the case.
Officials noted that this prosecution is part of Operation Take Back America, a federal initiative designed to utilize Department of Justice resources to combat violent crime, cartels, and transnational criminal organizations.
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