A Southern California man has received a 25-year term in federal prison for serving as the ringleader of an armed robbery crew linked to 12 heists throughout Los Angeles County over a six-week span, prosecutors said.
Makai Yusef Sanders, also known as “Muk Muk,” 23, of Hawthorne pleaded guilty in November to one count of interfering with commerce by robbery, one count of conspiracy to interfere with commerce by robbery and one count of brandishing a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence, according to the U.S. Department of Justice.
He received his sentence May 12 in federal court in Los Angeles. In addition to the prison time, Sanders was also ordered to pay $48,490 in restitution.
He had been in federal custody since October of 2023.
The Los Angeles area robbery spree
The robberies took place during August and September of 2023.
“The targeted businesses included Rite Aid stores in Long Beach, Bellflower, North Hollywood, Whittier, and South Los Angeles, and Walgreens stores in Pasadena, Lakewood, Monterey Park, and Glendale,” according to a DOJ statement. “Sanders and his co-conspirators also targeted Wingstop restaurants in Lynwood and Whittier.”
Sanders “personally victimized countless employees and customers in armed robberies of nine pharmacies and two…restaurants,” prosecutors stated in a sentencing memorandum.
The rest of the Los Angeles County robbery crew
Six additional alleged members of the robbery crew have been charged for their respective roles in the crimes, officials said. All but one of them has already been convicted. They include:
The investigation was conducted by the FBI, along with the Glendale Police Department; the Los Angeles Police Department; the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department; the Inglewood Police Department; the Long Beach Police Department; the Pasadena Police Department; the Monterey Park Police Department; the Whittier Police Department; and the Burbank Police Department.
This article originally appeared on Palm Springs Desert Sun: Leader of armed robbery crew linked to 12 SoCal heists sentenced to federal prison
Reporting by Brian Day, Victorville Daily Press / Palm Springs Desert Sun
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