A federal jury has convicted Mikhal Hamilton, 25, of Indianapolis of interference with commerce by robbery, brandishing a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence, and unlawful possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, according to a March 27 announcement.
The case highlights ongoing efforts by law enforcement to address violent crime involving firearms. The conviction follows the earlier sentencing of co-defendant David Washington, 23, of Arcadia, Indiana. Washington was sentenced in October 2024 to nine years in federal prison after pleading guilty to interference with commerce by robbery and brandishing a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence.
Court documents show that on June 25, 2023, Hamilton and Washington robbed the CVS Pharmacy on Rangeline Road in Carmel. Both men used firearms to threaten an employee before stealing prescription medications such as Oxycontin, Oxycodone, and various amphetamine stimulants. Police later stopped their vehicle—a blue Chevrolet Impala—and arrested both men. Officers recovered stolen pills and pill bottles along with two firearms: a Glock handgun with an extended magazine and obliterated serial number and a Polymer80 homemade “ghost gun.”
Hamilton’s prior felony convictions for carrying a handgun without a license and synthetic identity deception prohibit him from legally possessing any firearm.
The investigation was conducted by the Carmel Police Department alongside the FBI Indianapolis Field Office. U.S. District Judge Sarah Evans Barker presided over the trial; Hamilton will be sentenced at a later date.
U.S. Attorney Wheeler thanked Assistant U.S. Attorneys Kelsey L. Massa and Nate Walter for prosecuting the case with support from Paralegal Specialist Sarah Helbig and Victim Witness Coordinator Johnna Preidt.
This prosecution is part of Operation Take Back America—a nationwide initiative designed to protect communities from violent crime through coordinated resources from the Department’s Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETFs) and Project Safe Neighborhood (PSN).
