Source: United States Department of Justice News
PORTLAND, Ore.—On April 27, 2022, a federal jury in Portland found a Clackamas, Oregon man guilty for robbing a local public house at gunpoint and making off with five cartons of cigarettes.
Dustin Lee Henderson, 40, was found guilty of interfering with commerce with threats or violence; possessing a firearm in furtherance of, and using and carrying a firearm during and in relation to, a crime of violence; and illegally possessing a firearm as a convicted felon.
According to court documents, on November 22, 2019, Henderson robbed the Lighthouse Pub, a public house and deli located on 82nd Avenue in Clackamas. In video surveillance of the robbery, Henderson was seen handing the pub clerk a bag and taking five cartons of cigarettes. The pub’s owner chased Henderson through a parking lot when Henderson discharged a single round from his firearm, prompting the owner to stop the chase. Law enforcement later recovered a .22 caliber cartridge case near the site of the shooting.
Law enforcement later observed Henderson in a nearby mobile home lot and arrested him. Investigators executed a state search warrant on a mobile home where Henderson resided and recovered the stolen cigarette cartons, clothes worn by Henderson during the robbery, and a .22 pistol. A DNA analysis later linked Henderson to the seized firearm.
On January 22, 2020, a federal grand jury in Portland returned a three-count indictment charging Henderson with interfering with commerce with threats or violence, possessing a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence, and illegally possessing a firearm as a convicted felon.
Henderson faces a maximum sentence of life in prison with a 10-year mandatory minimum sentence, a $250,000 fine and five years of supervised release.
U.S. Attorney Scott Erik Asphaug of the District of Oregon made the announcement.
This case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) with assistance from Oregon State Police and the Clackamas County Sheriff’s Office. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Cassady Adams, Craig Gabriel, and Suzanne Miles prosecuted the case.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN). PSN is the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts. PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime. Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.