A Cuyahoga County man who committed a string of armed robberies while he was out on parole for a separate offense has been sentenced back to prison. Fourteen individuals were terrorized with life-threatening violence by his robberies.
Lawrence Sturdivant, 36, of Garfield Heights, Ohio, was sentenced to 352 months (29.3 years) in prison after pleading guilty to:
- Use, Carry, and Brandish a Firearm During and in Relation to a Crime of Violence
- Interference with Commerce by Robbery
- Attempted Interference with Commerce by Robbery
- Felon in Possession of Ammunition; prior convictions include Burglary and Attempted Burglary in 2010; and Aggravated Robbery in 2014.
He was also ordered to serve three years of supervised release after imprisonment. U.S. District Court Judge J. Philip Calabrese imposed the sentence on May 5.
According to court documents and information presented in court, throughout a three-week period in December 2021, Sturdivant terrorized employees and patrons at ten Cleveland-area stores as he committed robberies at gunpoint. Each time he entered a store, he would wander around the aisles before bringing a small item to the cashier counter. When the cashier opened the cashbox for the sale, Sturdivant pointed his gun at the employees, threatened their lives, and demanded money…