On May 10, Judge Michael Warren sentenced Thomas Joseph-Lee Jidas, 18, of Independence Township to 45 months to 40 years for the armed robbery of the BP gas station and convenience store on Sashabaw Road at Waldon Road.
According to police reports, at 2:59 a.m., May 23, 2017, Jidas, who was 17 years old at the time, threatened the store clerk with a gun and stole $242. He was wearing a black hooded coat, black scarf over his face, and latex gloves.
A K9 police dog tracked the suspect to the car wash next door, where the scent was lost. Security footage from that business showed the suspect approaching the gas station, then running in the direction of Water Tower Self Storage. Detectives found a set of latex gloves near the storage unit building of the business.
Detectives interviewed Jidas on May 30, 2017, when he was in custody at Oakland County Children’s Village on a separate matter.
A search warrant on his home on May 30 recovered a bicycle that matched tread patterns taken at the crime scene, shoes that matched tread patterns taken from the escape route, brown Carhartt knit cap, and black Carhartt coat.
The MSP lab matched DNA on the gloves to the suspect.
A semiautomatic pistol was found in the search but was not identified by the victim as the gun used in the robbery.
Jidas was arraigned on Nov. 10, and pled guilty to the charge on March 23.