The Herald, Sharon, Pa.

Local News

October 10, 2008

Man gets prison time for robbing Rite Aid

By Matt Snyder

SHARON — A Sharon man who robbed a Rite Aid last year with a realistic-looking pellet gun will spend 8 1/2 to 10 years in prison for two counts of robbery and two counts of simple assault.

Charles Leroy Simpson, 59, formerly of 76 Taylor Ave., was sentenced Friday by Mercer County Common Pleas Court Judge Thomas R. Dobson.

Simpson said in court documents that he had been drinking most of the day on Nov. 11, 2007, when he left to get cigarettes. After that, he said, his memory is fuzzy and he has no recollection of the robbery.

Police said Simpson walked into Rite Aid in downtown Sharon wearing a ski mask with the handle of a realistic-looking pellet gun revealed at his waist. He demanded money from the cashiers.

Simpson also threatened two others in the store. In a struggle outside the store, two Farrell men disarmed him and held him down, police said.

Simpson said in court documents that he broke his nose and hit his head during the struggle. Police said he tried to run after they handcuffed him and he had to be tackled.

A 5-year mandatory minimum sentence was attached to Simpson’s charges. He pleaded guilty in August.

Simpson has said he’s spent most of his life locked up in jail or prison, spending more time inside than out, according to court papers. He spent time in Allegheny County Jail or state prison in Pittsburgh in the 1970s and early 1980s for burglary, assault, and drug-related offenses.

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