Rockford man sentenced for retail robberies in DeKalb, Cherry Valley that netted $22K in merchandise

A Rockford man was sentenced to seven years in federal prison Thursday for his role in two electronics store robberies in December of 20216, including a DeKalb Best Buy, according to a news release from the United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois.

U.S. District Judge Ian Johnson sentenced Katrail Bridges, 32, to 87 months in prison after Bridges was found guilty of conspiracy to commit robbery in March following a four-day jury trial, the news release stated.

According to the release, Bridges conspired and agreed to participate in robberies at two retail stores: a Best Buy on Dec. 2, 2016, in Dekalb, and a Simply Mac store on Dec. 16, 2016, in Cherry Valley. In both instances, members of the group used pepper-spray against employees, according to the release, and the group stole over $22,000 of merchandise during the two robberies.

There were eight other conspirators charged as part of the federal investigation, the news release states.

Assisting with the case was also the DeKalb Police Department, Winnebago County Sheriff’s Office and the Cherry Valley Police Department.