Michigan men admit to robbery, assault of Bucks County comics book store owner in 2022
Two Michigan men have admitted robbing and assaulting the owner of a Feasterville comic book store in 2022, a crime they were arrested for nearly two years later.
At a hearing Friday, Bucks County Court of Common Pleas Judge Stephen Corr sentenced 23-year-old Zackery Maximus Tucker to five to 12 years in state prison. He was also ordered to pay more than $20,000 in restitution to the store owner.
Corr deferred sentencing for the second defendant, Caleb James-Lorenze Simpson, 36, until May 2.
More Bucks County news Falls police union drops suit seeking repayment for catering. Neither side is saying why.
The men, who were charged last year, entered guilty pleas Friday to felony charges including robbery, conspiracy to commit robbery and aggravated assault in the Sept. 18, 2022 robbery and assault of David Schwartz.
Before sentencing, Schwartz told the judge that the in the 40 years he's owned the Comic Collection he's never had a problem at the store, which has become a well-known and respected business.
That changed, however, the day that Tucker and Simpson, two long haul truckers, walked through the door.
'They took the sense of security and safety away from me,' Schwartz said.
Store surveillance footage played in court also showed men wearing masks, later identified as Simpson and Tucker, entering the Bustleton Pike store and pretending to be customers. They asked the store owner to retrieve merchandise off a high shelf.
After Schwartz climbed the ladder, one of the men knocked him off, sending the owner onto the ground where he landed on his head. Both men then beat Schwartz and tied him up using zip ties, Lower Southampton police said.
During the assault, Simpson punched the victim while wearing brass knuckles and held a knife to his face threatening to kill him if he didn't cooperate.
At the hearing, Bucks County First Assistant District Attorney Edward Louka showed store surveillance footage that captured the attack and police body cam footage showing the officer finding the badly beaten Schwartz on the floor.
The owner suffered numerous bruises, cuts, broken teeth and broken ribs, authorities said.
After incapacitating Schwartz, the men loaded two duffle bags and a backpack with items including a laptop, cash, comic books, Pokémon cards, cash and action figures, police said.
They also allegedly took the victim's keys and the cash out of his wallet, but left his credit cards.
During a search for the suspects, police recovered the duffle bags, which the suspects dropped, and clothing believed to be worn by the men.
More than a year after the robbery, Lower Southampton police received a tip that Simpson and another trucker, later identified as Tucker, were behind the robbery. Video footage helped to identify the men as the suspects.
Police then learned that three weeks after the Feasterville robbery Simpson was charged in Michigan for assault and attempting to steal a firearm.
In February 2024, Lower Southampton police received DNA results back from the items they recovered the day of the robbery, which were sent to a Pennsylvania State Police lab for analysis. The results showed a possible DNA match to Simpson.
Reporter Jo Ciavaglia can be reached at jciavaglia@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Bucks County Courier Times: Feasterville business owner says defendants took his sense of security
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