Providence man sentenced to 23 years for 2020 armed robbery

PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WLNE) — The Rhode Island Attorney General’s Office said that a Providence man who was involved in an armed robbery in 2020 was sentenced to prison.

Attorney General Peter Neronha said that Roberto Cruz Rivera, 30, was sentenced Wednesday to 23 years in prison with 52 years of probation.

Cruz Rivera robbed a Providence convenience store on Oct. 29,2020, and shot at a police officer during a chase that followed, said the attorney general.

Neronha said he pointed a gun at the desk clerk before taking about $500 from the cash register. When he was behind the counter, Cruz Rivera then fired his gun once at the ground near the clerk and twice at the ceiling before leaving.

After exiting the store, the 30-year-old got in a car, driven by Jefferey McKay, and heading to a 7-Eleven on Smith Street.

“During the robbery, a Providence Police officer pulled into the parking lot of the 7-Eleven in his marked cruiser and heard gunshots,” said Neronha.

When the officer exited his cruiser, Cruz Rivera fired shots at the officer while getting inside the car while running away, said the attorney general.

As the officer chased the two men in his cruiser, Cruz Rivera fired shots out the window. The suspects eventually crashed into a medium on Route 146, and ran into a wooded area before getting arrested.

Cruz Rivera was charged with first-degree robbery, discharge of a firearm during a robbery, assault with a dangerous weapon on a police officer, discharge of a firearm while committing an assault on a police officer, and carrying a pistol without a license.

McKay’s case is still pending in Providence Superior Court.