CINCINNATI -- Two Cincinnati men have been charged in connection to a string of robberies this summer at UDF gas stations around the city by a federal grand jury.
Lorenzo Bratcher, 23, and Isaiah Buck, 21, face charges of conspiracy to commit robbery, robbery and use of a firearm during a crime of violence. Bratcher was also charged with possessing a firearm after being convicted of a felony offense.
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The indictment alleges that between Aug. 30 and Sept. 6, the defendants committed nine robberies in Cincinnati. They include robberies at the United Dairy Farmers stores on Glenmore, Clifton, Hamilton and Woodford avenues and on Montgomery Road, as well as the Thornton’s Gas Station stores on West Galbraith and West North Bend roads.
Conspiracy to commit robbery is punishable by up to 20 years in prison. Use of a firearm during a crime of violence carries a potential sentence of seven years to life, or, in Bratcher’s case, a mandatory minimum of 25 years in prison up to life for a second offense. Possessing a firearm as a convicted felon is punishable by up to 10 years in prison.
Benjamin C. Glassman, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio, Trevor Velinor, Special Agent in Charge, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), Cincinnati Police Chief Eliot K. Isaac, Colerain Township Police Chief Mark Denney, Mount Healthy Police Chief Vincent L. Demasi and Norwood Police Chief William Kramer announced the charges.
U.S. Attorney Glassman commended the investigation of this case by ATF and the local police departments, and Assistant United States Attorney Anthony Springer, who is prosecuting the case.
An indictment merely contains allegations, and the defendants are presumed innocent unless proven guilty in a court of law.
