Maryland man sentenced for armed robberies, including robbing an armored truck
BALTIMORE -- A Maryland man has been sentenced to 17 years in federal prison for robbing a Laurel convenience store, committing armed bank robberies in Silver Spring, and robbing an armored truck.
Israel Ramirez, 19, of Burtonsville, Maryland, 17-year sentence will be followed by five years of supervised release, according to the Maryland U.S. Attorney's Office.
Ramirez discharged a gun during each of the armed robberies. He also fired his gun multiple times during the bank robberies, state officials said.
Ramirez pleaded guilty to robbing a convenience store in Laurel, Maryland, on July 4, 2021, and July 12, 2021.
During the first robbery, Ramirez fired his weapon into a cigarette display behind the cash register when it appeared that the store employee was experiencing difficulty opening the register, state officials said.
Eventually, staff opened the register and supplied Ramirez with cash.
A week later, Ramirez circled back to rob the same store later and was recognized by an employee, according to the Maryland U.S. Attorney's Office.
That same day, Ramirez began following an armored truck that had stopped by a nearby bank, state officials said.
The driver of that armored truck pulled into a shopping center and parked in front of a bank. Ramirez followed the truck to another business, according to the Maryland U.S. Attorney's Office.
When the driver returned to the truck with a deposit bag, Ramirez demanded that he give it to him. Ramirez then fled with the money he took from the driver, state officials said.
Toward the end of the year, Ramirez moved on to robbing banks.
On Nov. 4, 2021, and Dec. 3, 2021, Ramirez robbed two banks in Silver Spring, Maryland, according to the Maryland U.S. Attorney's Office.
During each robbery, Ramirez brandished a gun and fired it after entering the bank. Each time, he demanded that the bank employees give him $10,000, state officials said.
In the first robbery, after receiving money from an employee, Ramirez walked toward the exit and fired his gun into a wall as he left the bank. In the second bank robbery, Ramirez fired multiple shots into the ceiling of the bank before demanding cash, according to the Maryland U.S. Attorney's Office.
During the second robbery, Ramirez pulled down his mask, which allowed someone to recognize him as a customer of the bank, state officials said.
Investigators executed a search warrant at Ramirez's residence that same day and were able to recover a black 9-millimeter handgun that matched the description of the gun used by Ramirez during the robberies, according to the Maryland U.S. Attorney's Office.
Shell casings recovered from the robberies were matched to the gun, which was registered to Ramirez, state officials said.
