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Man sentenced to 11 years in prison after Hewitt pharmacy burglary in 2017

Posted at 4:46 AM, Apr 19, 2017
and last updated 2019-06-03 18:35:17-04

A man was sentenced to 11 years in prison on Monday after a Hewitt pharmacy burglary in 2017.

Officials said Andre Hamm pled guilty and was sentenced to 11 years on each count of burglary of habitation and evading arrest. Hamm's sentence is to run concurrently.

Police said the burglary happened just before 2:30 a.m. on April 19, 2017, at Lynn's Pharmacy on Hewitt Drive.

Hewitt Police Department Cpl. Jason Naylor said three suspects broke a glass window at the front of the pharmacy to get inside. He said they tried and failed to break the glass door. A fourth suspect stayed in the vehicle.

While inside, Naylor said surveillance footage captured them filling bags with whatever they could find. The footage also showed one of the suspects looking down at his phone, which had pictures of the items they needed to steal, according to Naylor.

Once they got what they needed, Naylor said they sped off in an SUV. 

After putting out a description of the suspects and their vehicle, a TSTC sergeant spotted the SUV. Only three suspects were inside the SUV at the time, Naylor said.

The suspects then led police on a chase, which ended near Heitmiller Steakhouse just off I-35 in Lacy-Lakeview after Naylor said the suspects lost control and crashed into a ditch.

They tried to run away from police on foot, but officers quickly caught up to them and arrested them, Naylor said.

The fourth suspect was not in the SUV when police arrested the three others. At this time, police don't have a description of him.

Hewitt Police Chief James Devlin identified the three men as 26-year-old Dwight Luann, 31-year-old Andre Hamm, and 30-year-old Murray Manning.

He said the two of them are out of the Houston area. A third is from San Antonio.

The three men could be charged with engaging in organized criminal activity for burglary of a building, among other charges.

Devlin said they're going to continue investigating because they believe the three men are part of a bigger operation. 

This is the fourth time Lynn's Pharmacy has been burglarized or robbed in about three years, police said.

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