Man handed 143 years behind bars after he tried to pay Burger King employee with meth before going on shooting spree

August 22, 2024 Sharon Banks

A man in Colorado has been sentenced to an extraordinary 143 years in prison following a violent crime spree that began when he attempted to pay for his meal at a Burger King with drugs.

40-year-old Eugene Robertson was found guilty by a Colorado jury on eight charges, including attempted murder with extreme indifference, felony menacing, illegal discharge of a firearm, harassment, reckless endangerment and possession of a controlled substance, according to a statement released on August 15 by the Arapahoe County District Attorney’s Office.

The incident that set off Robertson’s night of terror occurred on October 17, 2022, around 11 p.m., when he pulled up to a Burger King drive-thru on Buckley Road in Aurora. Prosecutors revealed that Robertson tried to pay for his food with drugs. When the employee refused, Robertson brandished a gun and pointed it at the worker before speeding away.

Shortly thereafter, police were called to a nearby 7-Eleven convenience store, where Robertson had continued his rampage. The store clerk said that Robertson had entered the store, aimed a gun at his head and fired at a surveillance camera screen before fleeing.

Witnesses outside the store also reported seeing Robertson shooting towards a man and his girlfriend before leaving the scene. Thankfully, no one was injured.

However, the chaos didn’t end there. Just after midnight, police received another emergency call from a woman at an apartment building on E. Kentucky Avenue, located just minutes away from the 7-Eleven.

She told cops that Robertson had been knocking on her door, and when she didn’t answer, he opened fire. Although several people were inside the apartment, no one was hurt in the barrage of bullets.

As police searched the area, they spotted Robertson on foot. He tried to hide in some bushes but was quickly apprehended and arrested.

Eric Ross, spokesperson for the 18th Judicial District Attorney’s Office, commented on the sentence, saying that the 143-year prison term was appropriate given the fear and danger Robertson had inflicted on numerous people in just one night.

“Jurors recognized the severity of the crimes this defendant committed,” Ross said, adding that the judge’s sentence was fitting for the crimes.

During the trial, it was revealed that Robertson’s crime spree was fueled by a mix of drugs and erratic behavior. The Burger King employee, who had a gun pointed at him by Robertson, later told police that he feared for his life when he refused the man’s offer of roughly 5 grams of methamphetamine as payment.

Witnesses at the 7-Eleven also described Robertson’s strange behavior, noting that he was carrying a Bible and talking about God before pulling out his gun.

Remarkably, after being arrested, Robertson told police that although he wasn’t physically hurt, his “feelings were hurt.”

This was not Robertson’s first run-in with the law. Prior to the 2022 crime spree, he had already served 84 months in prison for felony distribution of crack cocaine, which prohibited him from possessing a firearm.

Additionally, at the time of his 2022 arrest, there was an outstanding warrant for Robertson related to a March 2021 incident involving a car crash and shooting.

Senior Deputy District Attorney Taylor McCreary, who prosecuted the case, said that it was a “miracle no one was seriously hurt or killed” during Robertson’s night of violence.