Getaway driver in Citgo shooting gets 10 years

The teenager who drove the getaway car in the April robbery and shooting at a Campbell Avenue gas station will spend the next 10 years in prison.

Jacob Hudson, 17, had pleaded guilty to two counts of robbery and one count of aggravated malicious wounding in July for his part in the April 16 armed robbery of the Sunshine Market on Pollard Street and the April 24 robbery of the Citgo gas station and convenience store on Campbell Avenue.

Hudson was sentenced in Lynchburg Circuit Court on Friday by Judge Mosby Perrow to a total of 40 years in prison with 30 years of that sentence suspended. He was ordered to be on supervised probation for five years and good behavior for 10 years.

Lynchburg Deputy Commonwealth’s Attorney Chuck Felmlee said Hudson used his take from the Sunshine Market robbery to pay for the Hi-Point .40-caliber pistol used in the Citgo shooting by Kionne Pulley, the man that prosecutors say was the mastermind of the two robberies. Neither Pulley nor Hudson is old enough to buy a handgun in Virginia.

The man who bought the gun, Shane Alexander Meade, was sentenced on a charge of making materially false statements during the purchase of a firearm. He was sentenced to two years in prison with the entire term suspended and given 12 months of supervised probation.

That was the gun that shot clerk Abderrahin Elfilali in the head during the Citgo robbery. Elfilali survived the shooting but suffered permanent brain damage and will never be able to live without supervision and care, Felmlee said.

Meade apologized for what happened and told the court that he had no idea what the gun was going to be used for when he bought it for Hudson after the teenager gave him $70.

Hudson’s uncle, Tony Hubbard, broke down on the stand while he talked about his nephew’s character.

“He’s like a son to me,” Hubbard said. “He’s honest. There’s not a better kid on the face of the earth. When I first heard this, I thought my son would have did this before he would.”

Felmlee said Hudson had some 54 referrals, suspensions or write ups from 2003 to 2008 while in middle school and at Heritage High School, for incidents that ranged from punching another student, to arguing, lying and being disrespectful to teachers.

“He admitted his participation with these individuals who terrorized Lynchburg,” Felmlee said. “Those are his buddies. Those are his crowd. … He knew they were going to rob the store. He played a crucial role as the getaway driver.”

Hudson took the stand and told the court that he was sorry for what he did.

“I wish I could take it back,” he said. “I made the wrong decision. I was trying to be accepted and I wasn’t thinking.”

Under cross examination, Hudson admitted that he willingly took part in the robbery and even hid the weapon in a sandbox at his house and initially lied to police until a search warrant uncovered the bloody money from the Citgo robbery and the weapon.

Felmlee said Hudson cooperated fully with investigators after that and his confessions led to charges against the others involved.