William Rosario Lopez, 40, of New Haven, has been sentenced to 29 years in federal prison for an armed robbery spree targeting Connecticut gas stations during the initial days of the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020.
U.S. District Judge Victor A. Bolden imposed a sentence of 348 months of imprisonment, followed by five years of supervised release. U.S. Attorney David X. Sullivan for the District of Connecticut announced the sentencing.
Evidence presented at trial detailed five separate incidents between March 18 and March 26, 2020, across Vernon, Southington, Waterbury, Ansonia, and New Britain. Rosario Lopez, often wearing a mask, used a small silver pistol to threaten employees, demanding cash. In one instance in Ansonia, he fired a round in the direction of an employee who was unable to open a cash register quickly, though the employee was not struck.
Rosario Lopez was arrested on April 9, 2020, and investigators recovered a silver .25 caliber semiautomatic pistol and ammunition from a vehicle he used. A jury found him guilty on April 28, 2025, of four counts of obstruction of interstate commerce by robbery (Hobbs Act Robbery), one count of attempted obstruction, four counts of brandishing a firearm, and one count of possession of a firearm by a previously convicted felon.
His extensive criminal history includes prior convictions in New York for attempted murder and criminal possession of a weapon, and in Puerto Rico for various offenses including aggravated assault with a firearm and aggravated robbery. The investigation involved the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Connecticut State Police, and multiple local police departments.