A Dorchester man already convicted of one armed robbery has been indicted for another for an incident in which he tried to rob a local business with a hammer, only to be shot by the store’s owner, Suffolk County District Attorney Daniel F. Conley said.

RAYMOND SIMS (D.O.B. 2/2/64) was arraigned today in Suffolk Superior Court following his June 21 indictment by the Suffolk County Grand Jury for armed robbery while masked. The indictment charges Sims, who was previously convicted in the same court in 2007, as a second or subsequent offender.

Assistant District Attorney Nicholas Walsh of Conley’s Senior Trial Unit told the court that Sims walked into Essential Body Herbs at about 7:00 on the evening of Feb. 15 “with his hat pulled down low over his face and his collar turned up” to hide his features.

Sims approached the counter, where two female employees were stationed and demanded money, Walsh said. One of the employees reached for the nearby alarm button, prompting Sims to allegedly warn her not to press it. At that time, Walsh said, Sims began reaching into his jacket.

Believing correctly that Sims was going for a weapon, the employee hit the alarm and ran downstairs to tell the store’s owner what was happening.

“The defendant ran around the counter with a hammer and took money from the register,” Walsh said.
The store’s owner ran up to the sales floor with his licensed .22 caliber Walther P22 semiautomatic handgun, yelled at Sims, and fired on him, Walsh said. Sims ran toward the store’s front door and collapsed. The store owner instructed his employees to call 911.

Boston Police arrived a short time later with emergency medical technicians who transported Sims to Boston Medical Center.

“The owner was very forthcoming with police,” Walsh said, noting that he provided investigators with his weapon, a valid license to carry it, and store surveillance tapes that showed the incident unfold. The owner was not charged.

In adopting Walsh’s recommendation that Sims remain held on $250,000 cash bail, Superior Court Clerk Magistrate Connie Wong noted that the defendant had “a nine-page record, ten aliases, and a history of defaults.”

Sims will return to court on Aug. 15 with attorney Thomas Silevitch. His trial is tentatively scheduled for March 28, 2012.