Couple charged in statewide robbery spree
HARTFORD — A Bristol couple was charged Wednesday with committing several violent robberies across Connecticut, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
A federal grand jury in Hartford returned an indictment Wednesday, charging Lonny Cross, 44, and Rebecca Barbera, 40, in connection with about 30 robberies from Sept. 5 to Oct. 13. The couple hit several gas stations, convenience stores, mini-markets and liquor stores spanning 23 municipalities from Darien to Naugatuck to Stonington to Wethersfield, U.S. Attorney Vanessa Roberts Avery said in a news release.
“Several of the robberies occurred on the same day, often minutes apart,” Avery noted.
Surveillance footage from the stores shows what appears to be Cross entering, brandishing a knife or gun, threatening employees and stealing cash or other items, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said.
Witnesses to many of the robberies reported they saw the suspect flee in a darkcolored sedan, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
The indictment alleges that Barbera would go into the store first to determine how many employees and customers were inside. She would report this information to Cross, who then went inside to commit the armed robberies, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said.
The Federal Bureau of Investigations and Connecticut State Police have been working with state and local law enforcement agencies to investigate the string of robberies, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office. The robberies occurred in North Branford, Waterbury, Wolcott, Plymouth, New Haven, North Haven, Orange, West Haven, Wethersfield, Bristol, Southington, Naugatuck, Watertown, Franklin, Norwich, Waterford, Groton City, Stonington, Ledyard, Darien, Norwalk, Stratford and Seymour.
On Oct. 14, investigators searched a home belonging to Cross and Barbera as well as a 2014 Chevrolet Impala, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said. Inside the home, investigators found clothing consistent with what the suspect wore in several of the robberies, 54 bags of suspected heroin, suspected crack cocaine and paraphernalia, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said.
Police found more drugs inside the Impala — about 120 bags of suspected heroin and 14 grams of crack — and a knit hat matching the description of one the suspect wore during a robbery the day before, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
Cross was on state parole at the time and was arrested on state charges that day. He has been detained since his arrest, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said.
Barbera was charged on Oct. 28 on a federal criminal complaint. She has been released on a $10,000 bond, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
The indictment charges Cross and Barbera each with conspiracy to commit Hobbs Act Robbery. If convicted, they face up to 20 years in prison. Cross was also charged with possession with intent to distribute cocaine base, or crack, and heroin, which carries up to a 20-year prison sentence if he is found guilty, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said.
The Naugatuck Police Department thanked its federal partners in a statement Thursday, noting that Cross and Barbera are suspected of robbing two local businesses on the evening of Sept. 30
“The Naugatuck Police Department would like to thank our federal partners and U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Connecticut for their assistance that ultimately led to the apprehension of two dangerous offenders,” the police department said. “It is through our partnerships with local, state, and federal agencies that we can work together to quickly identify and take into custody these violent offenders from our community.”