James Lockridge, 43, of Evanston, was sentenced to 431 months in federal prison for three armed robberies at Marathon gas stations on Gilbert Avenue and Montgomery Road in February 2024.
U.S. District Judge Douglas R. Cole imposed the sentence Tuesday, Oct. 13, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Ohio. That amounts to nearly 36 years.
Lockridge carried out all three holdups in less than three weeks. He robbed a Marathon station on Gilbert Avenue on Feb. 5, 2024, a second Marathon on Montgomery Road on Feb. 10, 2024, and returned to the Gilbert Avenue location on Feb. 21, 2024, according to court documents and trial testimony cited in the federal announcement.
During each robbery, Lockridge wore a mask and fired the same silver 9 mm handgun into the ceiling. He pointed the weapon at store clerks. During the second and third robberies, he also pointed the gun at customers and used force against people in his way, prosecutors said.
Police arrested Lockridge 11 minutes after the third robbery. Officers found the firearm in his waistband, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office.
After the arrest, officers recovered boots, gloves and other clothing used during the robberies, along with a cash register, in and around the space where Lockridge had been living, prosecutors said.
A weeklong federal trial in June ended with Lockridge's conviction on seven robbery and firearms charges.
Lockridge was barred from possessing firearms as a previously convicted felon. His criminal history involves a 2014 armed robbery in which he entered a victim's car and pointed a gun at the victim before stealing the victim's belongings, according to the federal announcement. Prosecutors said he was on parole for that 2014 robbery. The Cincinnati Enquirer described his status as probation rather than parole.
His broader criminal history also includes charges of breaking and entering, burglary, theft, criminal trespass, threatening others with firearms and drug possession, according to the federal announcement. Police had encountered Lockridge multiple times on assault and domestic violence calls, the U.S. Attorney's Office said.
"Lockridge endangered lives and caused panic and terror in employees and customers during three separate robberies," U.S. Attorney Dominick S. Gerace II said in a statement. "… The excellent work of the investigators and prosecutors in this case stopped Lockridge before he successfully shot or seriously injured someone else."
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) and Cincinnati Police investigated the case. Residents with information about armed robberies in the area can contact Cincinnati Police or Crime Stoppers at 513-352-3040.
