MESSAGE FROM PROSECUTOR SHERRI BEVAN WALSH

Contact:  April Wiesner

(330) 643-8386

Chapman Guilty of Armed Robbery Charges

(October 19, 2011… Akron) … Summit County Prosecutor Sherri Bevan Walsh announced today that late yesterday a jury found Johnny Chapman, Jr., 20, of East Avenue in Akron, guilty of two counts of Aggravated Robbery, first-degree felonies with gun specifications; one count of Tampering with Evidence, a third-degree felony; one count of Carrying a Concealed Weapon, a fourth-degree felony; and one count of Obstructing Official Business, a second-degree misdemeanor.

On June 20, Chapman and another man robbed two other men at gunpoint on the sidewalk near White Avenue in Akron. The victims were able to provide Akron police officers with a good description of the robbers. When officers drove past two men who fit the description of the men they were looking for, the men ran and led the officers on a foot chase. Chapman threw a .38 caliber revolver in the grass before being caught and arrested. Chapman’s partner was never caught.

Ballistics evidence from Chapman’s gun showed it had been used 10 days prior in a shooting and attempted murder. However, the jury found Chapman not guilty of the Felonious Assault and Attempted Murder charges associated with that shooting.

Judge Alison McCarty will sentence Chapman on October 28 at 9 a.m. Chapman could face more than 25 years in prison.

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