A Cleveland man was sentenced to more than 32 years in federal prison for the armed robberies of three Dollar Tree stores in 2016. Authorities say he posted photos of a gun and cash to Facebook days after one robbery.
William Holmes, 22, was sentenced to 389 months in prison after being convicted of brandishing a firearm during the robberies of the Dollar Tree at 12900 Miles Road on June 4 and the store at 2892 East 116th Street on June 19, according to a news release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office. He was also sentenced for robbing the Miles Road store on May 14.
Holmes entered the Miles Road store on the evening of June 4, held a handgun to an employee’s head and told the employee to disarm the alarm. He took about $1,500.
A day after the robbery, Holmes posted a photo of himself on Facebook holding a stack of money in one hand and a handgun on the other, the release states. The next day, he posted another photo showing several stacks of money, a black pistol and candy lying on a table. He captioned the photo: “Money guns n snacks is life,” according to court documents.
Holmes entered the Miles Road store on the evening of June 4, held a handgun to an employee’s head and told the employee to disarm the alarm. Holmes took approximately $1,500 from the store, according to court documents and trial testimony
One day after that robbery, Holmes posted a photo of himself on Facebook holding a stack of money in one hand and a handgun in the other. The next day he posted a photograph of several stacks of money, a black pistol and candy laying on a table. Holmes captioned the photo: “Money guns n snacks is life,” according to court documents and trial testimony.
“This defendant is a predator who pointed a loaded gun at the head of someone just trying to do their job, then bragged about it on social media,” said U.S. Attorney Justin E. Herdman. “We will continue to target these violent criminals and work together to make our community a safer place to live, work and play.”
