Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Visiting U.S, District Judge Larry A. Burns from the Southern District of California has sentenced Jesse Rance Moore, 46, of Bell, to 21 years in federal prison for four counts pertaining to Hobbs Act robberies and three counts for brandishing a firearm during the robberies. The court also ordered Moore to forfeit his firearm, which was used to commit the offenses. A jury had found Moore guilty on Nov. 2, 2023.

According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, the FBI first learned of a masked man robbing a string of pharmacies in the Columbia County area after the North Florida Pharmacy of Fort White was robbed at gun point on Jan. 13, 2022. This masked individual was captured on surveillance cameras walking into the pharmacy with a black handgun, and demanding controlled substances, specifically, oxycodone, OxyContin and Percocet.

After holding up multiple store employees and taking the controlled substances, the masked man exited the pharmacy and drove southbound on US Highway 27. Unbeknownst to the robber, a good Samaritan in the pharmacy’s drive-thru followed the getaway vehicle and captured the license plate number, which led back to Moore. The FBI also later discovered that the vehicles used in previous three robberies (North Florida Pharmacy of Fort White on Aug. 2, 2021; North Florida Pharmacy of Chiefland on Nov. 20, 2021; and the Baya West Pharmacy in Lake City on Dec. 29, 2021) either matched the description of a white Ford F-350 registered to Moore or matched the vehicles Moore’s wife rented just days prior to the robberies.

According to trial testimony and evidence, law enforcement seized articles of clothing, multiple masks, the firearm, handwritten notes and brown boots associated with the robberies. In addition, and despite Moore’s many disguises, witnesses testified to the robber’s physical appearance, clothing, interactions, and demeanor during the robberies.

During trial, evidence seized from Moore’s cellphone was presented to demonstrate that he had Googled medications stolen from the pharmacies, store hours of pharmacies, and a variety of key word searches, including the question “do drug stores get robbed in florida,” which he Googled just weeks prior to the first robbery.

According to court documents, Moore was employed as a Florida Highway Patrol Trooper from Jan. 13, 2003, to Feb. 27, 2017. Moore had several disciplinary issues during his term of employment, where he was twice terminated, but later reached settlement agreements to convert his dismissals to suspensions.

This case was investigated by the FBI, the Columbia County Sheriff’s Office, the Lake City Police Department, the Chiefland Police Department, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), the Florida Department of Law Enforcement and the Florida Highway Patrol. It was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Kirwinn Mike.

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