Matthew Byrd

A man suspected in a string of armed robberies throughout east Mississippi is facing numerous felony charges, according to a statement released by the Lauderdale County Sheriff’s Department on Thursday.

Matthew Jarrett Byrd was indicted by a federal grand jury on May 2 in the U.S. Southern District Court of Mississippi for armed robberies taking place from April to May 2022 in Lauderdale, Scott and Hinds counties. Byrd is alleged to have robbed the Highway 11 Shell Station and Tobacco Haven in Meridian as well as Shell station on Highway 35 in Forest and a Sprint Mart station in Clinton.

According to court documents, Byrd faces 13 felony counts, including four counts of robbery, two counts of brandishing a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence, two counts of using or carrying a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence and five counts of felon in possession of a firearm. The indictment against Byrd was unsealed on July 24. If convicted, he could face up to life in prison.

The case was investigated by Lauderdale County Sheriff’s Department’s ATF Task Force officer along with LCSD deputies, Newton County Sheriff’s Department, Newton/Scott counties’ SWAT team, Meridian Police Department, Forest Police Department, Clinton Police Department, the ATF and the U.S. Attorney’s Office.