Armed felon convicted of Carmel CVS robbery; accomplice sentenced to nine years

Submitted by U.S. Attorney’s Office

A federal jury has convicted Mikhal Hamilton, 25, 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.

Co‑defendant David Washington, 23, Arcadia, was previously 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.

According to court documents and evidence introduced at trial, on June 25, 2023, Hamilton and Washington robbed the CVS Pharmacy on Range Line Road in Carmel. During the robbery, both men used firearms to threaten an employee and stole prescription medications, including Oxycontin, Oxycodone, and various amphetamine stimulants. They fled the scene in a blue Chevrolet Impala. Carmel Police Department officers conducted a high‑risk traffic stop shortly afterward, arresting both men and recovering the stolen pills, pill bottles, a Glock handgun with an extended magazine and obliterated serial number, and a Polymer80 homemade firearm, otherwise known as a “ghost gun.”

Hamilton’s criminal history includes felony convictions for carrying a handgun without a license and synthetic identity deception, which prohibits him from legally possessing a firearm.

The Carmel Police Department and FBI Indianapolis Field Office investigated this case. U.S. District Judge Sarah Evans Barker presided over the trial and will sentence Hamilton at a later date.

U.S. Attorney Wheeler thanked Assistant U.S. Attorneys, Kelsey L. Massa and Nate Walter, who are prosecuting this case, with the assistance of Paralegal Specialist Sarah Helbig and Victim Witness Coordinator Johnna Preidt.

This case is part of Operation Take Back America a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to protect communities from the perpetrators of violent crime. Operation Take Back America streamlines efforts and resources from the Department’s Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETFs) and Project Safe Neighborhood (PSN).