GREENVILLE, Miss. — A federal jury convicted a Holmes County man of armed robbery and using a firearm during a violent crime in connection with a 2023 holdup at a Dollar General, U.S. Attorney Scott F. Leary said Friday.
Carleone Pate Jr., 21, of Lexington was found guilty of Hobbs Act robbery and brandishing a firearm during the crime, Leary said. According to court records, the robbery occurred Jan. 19, 2023, when a masked gunman entered the Dollar General in the Black Hawk community and demanded money from the cash register and the safe.
Law enforcement officers launched a search after the robbery and established perimeter checkpoints in the area, authorities said. Pate was later arrested in the woods of northern Holmes County by an off-duty game warden with assistance from a Mississippi Department of Transportation employee, officials said.
Investigators identified Pate through evidence gathered during the investigation led by the Carroll County Sheriff’s Office with assistance from the Mississippi Highway Patrol and other agencies, officials said. Court filings say Pate had recently been released from prison after serving a sentence for aggravated assault convictions in DeSoto County and was out on bail at the time. U.S. District Judge Debra M. Brown will sentence Pate at a later date. The Hobbs Act is a federal statute that allows robbery cases affecting interstate commerce to be prosecuted in federal court. This is a developing story and will be updated as more details emerge.
