Graphic: EPD.

A Rio Dell man charged with an armed-robbery spree in November is scheduled for a jury trial in August.

This morning Judge Dale Reinholtsen set an Aug. 28 trial date for Christian James Shepard, suspected of being the man who terrorized clerks throughout the county during a 15-day string of holdups. He is charged with nine counts of robbery and one count of attempted robbery, along with numerous special allegations of personal use of a firearm and discharging a firearm. No one was injured, but on three occasions Shepard reportedly fired a bullet into the floor.

Shepard, 26, recently gave up his right to a preliminary hearing, held to determine whether there is enough evidence for a trial.  At his arraignment today, Deputy Public Defender David Lee entered not guilty pleas on his behalf. Shepard is being held on $1 million bail.

The robber used a variety of disguises, sometimes wearing fake facial hair and other times preferring a ski mask or bandana. During the first four hold-ups he used a sawed-off shotgun, but then he switched to a long-barreled revolver.

Shepard’s alleged first attempt was about midnight Nov. 3 at the Shell service station, Fifth and V streets in Eureka. A man with a sawed-off shotgun came in and demanded money, but the female clerk noticed the gun wasn’t loaded and told him to leave.

Minutes later, a ski-masked man carrying a sawed-off shotgun robbed the Eureka Holiday Inn Express.

Shepard is accused of going on to hold up the Chevron Mini-Mart at Fourth and M streets in Eureka,  the Redwood Riverwalk Motel in Fortuna, the Union 76 Mini-Mart in McKinleyville,  the Arcata Alliance 76 station in Arcata, Winco Foods in Eureka, the Benbow Inn south of Garberville, the Ferndale Red Front Store in Ferndale and finally, on Nov. 18, Stop and Shop Market on Wabash Avenue in Eureka.

He allegedly fired a shot into the floor while robbing Winco Foods, Benbow Inn and Stop and Shop Market.

Eureka police identified Shepard as a suspect partially because his red Pontiac sedan was seen on video surveillance tape the night of the Chevron station robbery. He was caught near Rio Dell on Nov. 20.

According to a report filed by Eureka police Detective Ron Harpham, Shepard confessed his guilt when arrested.

He faces decades in prison if convicted of all charges and the firearms allegations.

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