KC man pleads guilty in Jimmy John’s robbery with calm cashier

A Kansas City man admitted Thursday that he committed an armed robbery captured on video that became a worldwide sensation last year.

Terry K. Rayford, 55, pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court to charges of armed robbery, carjacking and being a felon in possession of a firearm.

Last April, Rayford walked into the Jimmy John’s at 39th Street and Broadway, pulled out a handgun and pointed at an employee. The robbery, and the employee’s calm reaction to having a gun pointed at him, was captured on surveillance video that was disseminated by the media.

Tuker Murray, the cashier in the incident, told media shortly after the incident that he “didn’t get the feeling” that Rayford was going to shoot him.

He added he didn’t want to hand over cash, but he did after his manager encouraged him to do so.

Murray no longer works at the same store but still works for Jimmy John’s, a former co-worker said.

Rayford, 55, was arrested the next day in Independence after a retired Kansas City police major recognized him from the robbery video. The major called Independence police, who stopped Rayford in a vehicle and recovered two handguns.

In addition to the Jimmy John’s robbery, Rayford was charged with an armed carjacking on the same day.

After his arrest, Rayford told investigators that he was a daily user of crack cocaine. He said that he had stolen the two guns found in the vehicle from a drug dealer.

He also admitted to robbing the Jimmy John’s. He said he chose it over other restaurants because it had “dim lighting.”

Rayford has 13 prior armed robbery convictions, according to court records.

He was on parole at the time of the robbery last year and told police that he had considered being sent back to prison because “parole conditions were hard to follow,” according to an affidavit filed in court after his arrest.

Under terms of Thursday’s plea agreement, Rayford faces a sentence of 20 to 30 years in federal prison.

This story was originally published February 8, 2018 at 5:44 PM with the headline "KC man pleads guilty in Jimmy John’s robbery with calm cashier."