ALEXANDRIA, Va. – Reynard Lazaro Prather, 22, of Oxon Hill, Md., was indicted by a federal grand jury yesterday for his alleged role in the attempted armed robbery and murder of a man at a residence in the Centreville area of Fairfax County, Va. 

            Neil H. MacBride, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia; Colonel David Rohrer, Fairfax County Chief of Police; and William Hoover, Special Agent in Charge of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives’ (ATF) Washington Field Division, made the announcement. 

Prather was indicted on Nov. 17, 2011, of conspiracy to commit Hobbs Act robbery, use of a firearm in a crime of violence, use of a firearm in a crime of violence causing death, and possession of ammunition by a prohibited person. If convicted, Prather faces a maximum penalty of life in prison or death.

            According to the indictment and other court records, Prather allegedly conspired with two unnamed individuals to rob the owner of a check cashing facility at gunpoint at the store owner’s residence in Centreville, where the conspirators believed the target kept the store’s proceeds.

            On May 17, 2010, Prather and a co-conspirator allegedly drove from Maryland to a shopping center in Virginia, where a third co-conspirator picked them up and dropped them off at the target’s residence. Court records allege that Prather was armed with a semi-automatic pistol and entered the target’s garage with his partner – who was also armed with a semi-automatic pistol – to await the target’s arrival. Prather and the co-conspirator are accused of confronting Jose Cardona, an employee of the owner, and the owner’s son, when they arrived at the residence. During the struggle, court documents allege, Cardona was shot and killed by one of the two men.

            This case was investigated by the Fairfax County Police Department and the ATF.  Assistant United States Attorneys Michael Rich and Zachary Terwilliger are prosecuting the case on behalf of the United States.

            Criminal indictments are only charges and not evidence of guilt.  A defendant is presumed to be innocent until and unless proven guilty.

A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Virginia at http://www.justice.gov/usao/vae.  Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia at http://www.vaed.uscourts.gov or on https://pcl.uscourts.gov.

 

 

 

Return to Top