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Dec 9, 2025
Wapato gang member sentenced to prison in Yakima Walmart Pop-Tart robbery
Yakima Herald-Republic
A Wapato gang member has been sentenced to seven years in prison for pulling a gun on a Walmart employee while shoplifting Pop-Tarts pastries.
Deon Xavier Smartlowit-Billy, 26, pleaded guilty in October in Yakima County Superior Court to first-degree robbery in connection with the 2024 incident.
In return for his plea, prosecutors dropped second-degree assault and second-degree unlawful possession of a firearm in connection with the incident, as well as unrelated charges of second-degree unlawful possession of a firearm and second-degree burglary in connection with an incident at Kohl's in Union Gap.
Judge Shane Silverthorn went with the recommended sentence of two years for the robbery, which was below the standard range of 31-41 months, plus a five-year enhancement for using a firearm in the crime.
The firearm enhancement cannot be reduced through good behavior in prison. He will get credit for time served in the Yakima County jail while awaiting trial.
A Yakima police officer was patrolling the parking lot of the East Chestnut Avenue Walmart around 11:15 p.m. May 28, 2024, when he was told that a theft had just occurred in the store, and that the suspect, who had flashed a gun as he was running out, was running south on Chalmers Street, according to a probable cause affidavit.
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The officer was unable to find the suspect, but officers found Smartlowit-Billy a half-hour later after he tried to stop a man on a bicycle, the affidavit said.
At the store, an employee said he saw Smartlowit-Billy and a woman come in the store around 10:55 p.m., and the suspect was carrying a backpack and a fanny pack, while the woman had what appeared to be an empty purse, the affidavit said. The employee said the woman was leaving the store by herself 10 minutes later and her purse appeared fuller.
The employee asked her to return the stolen items and leave,
