A Queens Village man will spend the next three decades in a federal prison for murdering a Long Island convenience store clerk during a robbery, prosecutors announced on Monday.
Jermaine Jackson, 25, pleaded guilty last year to a murder charge, according to U.S. Attorney Richard A. Donoghue. During a Dec. 17 appearance at the Central Islip federal courthouse, Jackson was ordered by U.S. District Judge Sandra Feuerstein to serve 365 months (30 years, 5 months) in prison, followed by five years of supervised release.
Donoghue said that Jackson shot and killed Edwin Lopez on Dec. 16, 2016, while holding up the Al Mini Mart in Valley Stream.
“Jackson senselessly murdered a hard-working man who was just trying to support his wife and teenage daughter. While this sentence cannot return Mr. Lopez to his family and community, it will ensure that others will be protected from Jackson for decades to come and it will make other criminals think twice before taking a life,” Donoghue said. “It is my hope that today’s sentence brings some measure of closure for the Lopez family.”
Prosecutors said that Jackson and an unidentified co-conspirator walked into the Al Mini Market on Dec. 16, 2016, wearing a mask over part of his face and displaying a semi-automatic handgun. Jackson held one of the workers at gunpoint while his partner attempted to grab cash from the register.
Seconds later, authorities said, Lopez grabbed a bottle and began to resist the robbery, and Jackson then shot him. Despite being wounded, Lopez chased Jackson as he attempted to flee the store. Federal agents said that Jackson then shot Lopez several more times about the body, causing his death.
Jackson and his partner wound up fleeing the store empty-handed, law enforcement sources noted. Following an investigation, authorities tracked down Jackson in March 2017 and arrested him on murder charges.
