CRAIG KNOWLTON
WESTFIELD – A city man who pleaded guilty to the armed robbery of the Rite Aid drug store on East Silver Street has been sentenced to a 3-5 year term in state prison.
Craig Knowlton, 27, formerly of 3 Shepard St., was arrested minutes after a July 6, 2013 robbery at the drug store where he had allegedly borrowed a pen so he could write his robbery note.
Because the man was wearing gloves on a hot summer day, the clerk had called a colleague to assist her moments before the suspect handed her a note demanding $200 and claiming to have a gun.
The man left after the clerk gave him ten $20 bills but the clerk’s colleague, after learning of the robbery, walked out of the store and watched the man remove his shirt as he walked toward St. Dennis Street.
The clerk, meanwhile, had called police and the arriving officers took up positions to cover both St. Dennis Street and nearby railroad berm. They soon took custody of Knowlton.
Although he was not dressed as the suspect had been he was found to be in possession of ten $20 bills.
A subsequent search of the area, with assistance from a State Police K-9 team, revealed clothing that matched the description of what the robber had been wearing.
Knowlton, a young man well known to many police officers who have dealt with him in a wide variety of situations for several years, was arrested for armed robbery
District court records show that Knowlton has been arrested numerous times for charges which include shoplifting, receiving stolen property, possession of a Class D drug (marijuana), assault, disorderly conduct and trespass but armed robbery was a departure from the type of crime he had been known for, a fact Knowlton tried to play on when he denied involvement in the crime prior to his actual arrest.
Det. Sgt. Steven K. Dickinson said at the time that Knowlton had “graduated” and predicted that he had also “graduated” to state prison, a rather different experience than the county jail Knowlton already had experience with.
After arraignment in Westfield District Court, the charges there were dismissed after he was indicted and arraigned in Hampden Superior Court, where much stiffer sentences are possible.
Prosecuted by Assistant District Attorney Amy D. Wilson, Knowlton appeared before Judge Richard J. Carey where he pleaded guilty to a charge of armed robbery with a handgun.
Dickinson was not in court for the trial March 25 but said that Wilson later told him that she had thought that she and Knowlton’s lawyer were going to jointly recommend a sentence of three-and-a- half years to three-and-a-half years plus one day but did not because there is no mandatory minimum sentence for the charge.
In the end, the defense recommended a 2-3 year sentence and Wilson said the prosecution countered with a recommendation for a 4-6 year sentence.
Carey imposed a 3-5 year sentence and ordered that Knowlton be credited for the 261 days he had been incarcerated before sentencing.
