Tulalip Tribal Member Sentenced to 31 Months in Prison for Conspiracy to Commit Robbery Defendant Participated in Robbery of Liquor Store Where He Used to Work

KENNETH ROBINSON, 33, a member of the Tulalip Tribes was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Seattle to 31 months in prison and three years of supervised release for conspiracy to commit robbery. At the sentencing hearing U.S. District Judge Richard A. Jones ordered that ROBINSON undergo substance abuse treatment.

According to records filed in the case, ROBINSON joined with three other men in the robbery of the tribal liquor store on the Tulalip Reservation. On July 28, 2007, two of the men entered the Quil Ceda Village Liquor Store, and displayed weapons. ROBINSON remained at the back door. ROBINSON had previously worked at the liquor store, but, like the others, he was wearing a mask. When one of the employees ran from the store, she struggled with ROBINSON and fell to the ground. ROBINSON and the conspirator who was driving the get-away car, fled the scene. The two men inside the store stole about $8,000. However, they had to flee from police, and buried the money a short distance from the store. The money was later found. The trail of the robbers went cold until 2009, when the getaway driver admitted his crime to police. ROBINSON pleaded guilty on July 14, 2010.

In asking for a three-year prison term the federal prosecutor wrote to the court saying, “Robinson also played an aggravating role in the robbery, i.e., he physically restrained a terrified female store clerk who he previously worked with at the liquor store. As an enrolled Tulalip tribal member, Robinson abused the trust of the Tulalip Tribes who employed him for several years.”

The case was investigated by the Tulalip Tribal Police and the FBI. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney J. Tate London. Mr. London serves as a Tribal Liaison for the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

For additional information please contact Emily Langlie, Public Affairs Officer for the United States Attorney’s Office, at (206) 553-4110 or Emily.Langlie@USDOJ.Gov.