Joseph Michael Gorski, 30, of Arnold has been sentenced to 10 years in prison for holding a gas station attendant at gunpoint while robbing a Phillips 66 in Arnold in August 2020. He also was sentenced to seven years for possession of a controlled substance stemming from an incident five months earlier at the same gas station, court documents show.
Gorski pleaded guilty on Oct. 18 to first-degree robbery and armed criminal action tied to the armed robbery and to possession of a controlled substance and drug paraphernalia tied to the earlier incident at the gas station. On Dec. 3, Jefferson County Div. 5 Circuit Judge Victor Melenbrink sentenced Gorski to 10 years for the robbery charge and 10 years for armed criminal action, as well as seven years for possession of a controlled substance and 30 days in jail for possession of drug paraphernalia.
However, all the sentences will be served concurrently, or at the same time, according to court records.
Jefferson County assistant prosecuting attorney Douglas S. Pribble handled the cases.
At about 1 a.m. Aug. 5, 2020, Arnold Police got a call about the armed robbery at the gas station, 5 Municipal Drive. The gas station attendant told police a man entered the business, pulled out a gun and threatened to kill the clerk’s family if he called police, the probable-cause statement in the case said.
Gorski got away with $292. He also took off a jacket, mask and gloves he was wearing and left the clothing nearby on Friar Tuck Drive, where he had parked his car before robbing the convenience store, the report said.
Arnold Police discovered Gorski had called the gas station on Aug. 5, 2020, before allegedly showing up there to rob it. In the days leading up to the robbery, Gorski contacted the police to tell them about possible drug activity at an Arnold hotel, where he had worked. He also called Arnold Police days before the robbery to ask if he could carry a gun while he was with police officers, according to the report.
During their investigation, Arnold Police identified Gorski as the suspect after reviewing the gas station’s surveillance footage. Police also learned Gorski was wanted in Jefferson County on a warrant for a probation violation, the report said.
Arnold Police and the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office located Gorski at about 2 p.m. Aug. 7, 2020, at a home in the 3500 block of Catalina Lane in Imperial and arrested him, Arnold Police Capt. Rich Shular said.
When Gorski was taken to the Arnold Police Station, he admitted to robbing the convenience store at gunpoint and threatening the clerk’s family. Gorski told police he got the gun from someone he wouldn’t identify, and he said he returned the gun to that person, the report said.
About five months earlier, on March 14, 2020, Gorski was arrested at the same gas station when officers found him with an illegal substance and drug paraphernalia. He told police he routinely bought marijuana in the area, the probable-cause statement said.