Bio

Robert Lee Thompson was born on April 1, 1975, in Harris County, Texas. He grew up in a community with various challenges. Not much is known about his family life or upbringing. There are few records detailing his childhood or education, except that he had about 10 years of formal education.

As a young man, Thompson had no prior criminal record. However, during his early adulthood, he became involved in a series of criminal activities. He worked with an accomplice named Sammy Butler, and together, they engaged in multiple robberies of convenience stores.

Thompson's life took a drastic turn when he committed a robbery that would lead to serious consequences. This event occurred on December 5, 1996, when he was just 21 years old. Following this series of events, Thompson was arrested in 1998.

After his arrest, he was convicted of capital murder and received a death sentence. His time leading up to the conviction was marked by a significant crime spree, which included multiple robberies. Ultimately, Robert Lee Thompson was executed by lethal injection in Texas on November 19, 2009.

Murder Story

On December 5, 1996, Robert Lee Thompson and an accomplice, Sammy Butler, entered a convenience store in Harris County, Texas, to commit a robbery. Thompson was armed with a .25 caliber semiautomatic pistol, while Butler had a .38 caliber revolver. They approached the cashier, Mubarakali Meredia, and demanded money. When Meredia did not comply quickly enough, Thompson shot him in the abdomen.

As Meredia fell to the floor, Thompson also aimed at Meredia's cousin, Mansor Rahim Mohammed, who had started to run toward the back of the store, and shot at him. Thompson shot Meredia three more times while he was on the ground and ordered him to get up and retrieve the cash. Meredia complied. Thompson then put the gun to Meredia's neck and pulled the trigger; however, the gun did not fire because he had run out of bullets. After that, he struck Meredia with the butt of the gun and hit him with the cash register drawer. Despite the assault, Meredia survived the encounter.

After collecting the money, Thompson and Butler fled the store. As Thompson drove away, Butler fired two shots at Rahim, hitting him in the chest and causing his death. Thompson later admitted to police that this robbery was part of a two-month crime spree where he felt compelled to take action against what he perceived as discrimination by Middle Eastern and Asian store clerks against African Americans.

Thompson and Butler had committed a series of other robberies before this incident. The case went to trial, resulting in Thompson's conviction for capital murder. He was sentenced to death. Thompson's appeals to various courts, including the U.S. Supreme Court, were rejected. He was executed by lethal injection on November 19, 2009, in Texas.