Media Contact: Lt. David Shaffer | 217-403-7030 | [email protected]
On November 14, 2016 and November 27, 2016, the Dollar General Store located at 3001 W. Bradley Ave. was robbed by an unknown male subject. During each robbery, the suspect displayed a handgun and escaped with an undetermined amount of currency.
Champaign Police Detectives continued the investigation into these incidents and identified the individual believed to be responsible for the robberies. This individual is identified as Joseph O. Barrett, a 44-year-old male from Champaign.
On January 9, 2017, Detectives served a court authorized search warrant at the residence of Joseph Barrett, seizing several items of evidentiary value. A short time later, Barrett was located in a vehicle in the 100 block of N. Neil St. where he was arrested without incident. At the time of his arrest, Detectives located and seized additional items of evidentiary interest.
Joseph Barrett was transported to the Champaign County Correctional Center and booked for the offenses of Possession of a Controlled Substance and Aggravated Robbery.
This investigation remains ongoing. Champaign Police Detectives ask that anyone with information related to these incidents to please contact the Champaign Police Department Investigations Division at 217-351-4545.
Information can also be provided anonymously through Crime Stoppers. Crime Stoppers calls are routed to a third-party national call center that receives the information, completes a tips information form, and passes the tip information to the appropriate law enforcement agency. Caller ID tracking is not utilized by Crime Stoppers, and conversations are not recorded.
Anonymous tips can be shared by phone at: 217-373-8477 (TIPS) or online at www.373tips.com. Crime Stoppers will pay a reward of up to $1,000 for information leading to the arrest of the person(s) responsible for this crime.