Armed robbery suspect charged with intimidating witnesses from jail

Desmond Jamal Parker was arraigned Thursday on four counts of witnesses intimidation, false report of a felony and solicitation of lying to police, according to court records.

Parker is accused of attempting to intimidate witnesses from the Washtenaw County Jail, where he has been held since last July, police said.

“He was trying to send mail out to get witnesses or victims not to testify,” said Sgt. Geoff Fox of the Washtenaw County Sheriff's Office.

There was no information immediately available about who Parker is accused of writing to or what was written, according to police.

Parker was arrested shortly after the robbery of a store in the 800 block of North Huron River Drive round 2 a.m. July 2, police said.

Police said the business’s owner was outside on a cigarette break when a gun-wielding man told him to go back into the store. Parker is accused of making the man open the register, grabbing cash and fleeing the store. The business owner was not injured.

Police said they later arrested Parker while he was trying to hide a gun under a shed. Parker is charged with armed robbery, felony firearm, carrying a concealed weapon, assaulting or resisting a police officer and possession of a firearm in that case.

Parker last appeared in court on March 11 for a pretrial hearing in the armed robbery case. At that time, a judge dismissed a motion to quash and reappointed a pubic defender to represent Parker after his counsel withdrew, according to court records. The case was then adjourned until March 18. A jury trial is set for March 25.

He remains in the Washtenaw County Jail on three different bonds, according to jail records: $100,000 cash or surety bond for the armed robbery charges, 10 percent of $10,000 for resisting arrest charge and $100,000 cash or surety bond for the witness intimidation case.