BEAUMONT, Texas — A Nederland man has been sentenced to 20 years in federal prison according to U.S. attorney Damien Diggs Tuesday afternoon.
53-year-old Tarrell Donald Nowlin pleaded guilty to Hobbs Act robbery and sentenced to 20 years in prison by U.S. District Judge Marcia Crone on October 1, 2024.
According to court documents, back on on January 16, 2024, law enforcement officers responded to a call regarding an armed robbery at the Speedway Gas Station located on Eastex Freeway in Beaumont.
The store clerk reported the assailant pulled into the parking lot and parked near one of the gas pumps. The driver then entered the business and pointed a revolver at the clerk and demanded money.
The clerk opened the cash register, and the assailant took approximately $550 cash and left the store.
Law enforcement reviewed video footage from the gas station and local surrounding businesses and were able to identify Nowlin as the assailant before arresting him hours after robbing the store.
Police say the van he was driving was also involved in an aggravated robbery on the south side of Beaumont on Saturday, Jan. 13, 2024.
Further investigation revealed Nowlin was a career offender with three prior robbery convictions. Nowlin was indicted by a federal grand jury on April 3, 2024.
Nowlin had in fact been paroled just months before the robbery after serving time for a Montgomery County bank robbery back in 2017.
Charges are pending on the other crimes.
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone.
The case was investigated by the FBI, Beaumont Police Department and Nederland Police Department and prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Matthew Quinn.
