Four Kansas City Men Charged with Armed Robbery Following Car Chase, Crash |
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U.S. Attorney’s Office, Western District of Missouri
December 20, 2013
KANSAS CITY, MO—Tammy Dickinson, United States Attorney for the Western District of Missouri, announced that four Kansas City, Missouri men were charged in federal court today with armed robbery following a high-speed police chase that ended in a crash that sent one of the men to the hospital.
Randolph E. Wells, 28; Jamal L. Vassie, 24; Gary S. Dorch, 20; and Sergio A. Rascoe, 27, all of Kansas City, were charged in a two-count federal criminal complaint filed in the U.S. District Court in Kansas City, Missouri. Wells, Vassie, and Dorch remain in federal custody pending a detention hearing on Thursday, December 26, 2013. Rascoe remains hospitalized with injuries from the collision.
Each of the four defendants is charged with one count of armed robbery and one count of possessing a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence.
According to an affidavit that was filed in support of the criminal complaint, the defendants carjacked a Chrysler Sebring from an elderly woman at a car wash before driving to Public Storage at 9820 Holmes in Kansas City, where they stole $80 from the business as well as a wallet, identification, and cell phone from an employee.
Shortly after the carjacking, the affidavit says, law enforcement officers saw the stolen Sebring being driven in tandem with a black Ford Taurus that had been identified with past robberies. The FBI and the Kansas City Police Department have been conducting an investigation into a series of armed robberies of various businesses in the metropolitan area. During the course of the investigation, the affidavit says, the Taurus was observed near robberies that occurred in and around Kansas City.
The Sebring and the Taurus both drove to Public Storage, and parked the Taurus on a side street while Dorch, a passenger in the Sebring, allegedly pulled a red bandana up over his face and entered the business. Immediately after the robbery, law enforcement officers arrested Wells, the driver of the Taurus, and Vassie, a passenger in the Taurus. A loaded Cobray 9mm pistol with an extended magazine was lying on the back seat.
The Sebring, driven by Rascoe, fled north on Holmes and exited onto I-435 East while being pursued by law enforcement personnel with their lights and sirens activated. Rascoe refused to stop, and the Sebring was involved in a vehicular crash near the intersection of Blue Parkway and Elmwood. Rascoe and Dorch were arrested. A loaded Taurus .40-caliber pistol was removed from Dorch’s front pants pocket.
Dickinson cautioned that the charges contained in this indictment are simply accusations and not evidence of guilt. Evidence supporting the charges must be presented to a federal trial jury, whose duty is to determine guilt or innocence.
This case is being prosecuted by Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Patrick Edwards. It was investigated by the FBI and the Kansas City, Missouri Police Department.