Port St. Lucie man sentenced to 37 1/2 years in prison in Stuart vape shop shooting
Joshua Gibbs changed his plea to guilty on five charges.
STUART, Fla. —
A 21-year-old Port St. Lucie man was sentenced to 37.5 years in prison after a shooting in January 2025 at a vape shop.
On Tuesday, Circuit Judge Elizabeth Metzger also sentenced Joshua Gibbs to 10 years of probation after his time in state prison, Stuart police said Friday. On Sept. 2, he changed his plea to guilty of five charges: robbery while wearing a mask, attempted robbery while wearing a mask, aggravated assault with a firearm while wearing mask, shooting with a deadly missile and carrying a concealed weapon.
Deputies responded to a shooting at 7:31 p.m. on Jan. 25, 2025, at Miller’s Vapory at 1596 SE Federal Highway.
google map
Location of vape shop in Stuart.
Gibbs entered the business wearing a ski mask and armed with a handgun before opening fire on the store clerk. The clerk returned fire and no one was injured.
After an extensive investigation by Stuart Police detectives, Gibbs was identified as the suspect.
A person matching Gibbs’ description was riding an electric bike near an apartment complex on Southeast St. Lucie Boulevard in Stuart, near where records confirmed he lived at one time. The arrest report also listed his address in Altamonte Springs, where family members live.
A warrant was issued, and he was apprehended in Douglasville, Georgia, with the assistance of the U.S. Marshals Fugitive Task Force on Feb. 7, 2025.
One month earlier, Gibbs was denied service for being underage. Gibbs also threatened the store clerk, asking if they “valued his life over his products,” and then proceeded to steal $300 worth of merchandise and leave the area.
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