Lubbock man sentenced for roles in home invasion, robberies

A 30-year-old man was sentenced last week to 18 years in prison after he admitted to his role in an armed robbery and a home invasion two years ago.

Ladasma Shedd, who has been held at the Lubbock County Detention Center since Sept. 9, 2021, appeared in the 364th District Court and pleaded guilty to counts of burglary of a habitation with intent to commit robbery and aggravated robbery. Both charges carry a punishment of five years to life in prison.

However, as part of a deal with the Lubbock County District Attorney's Office, he accepted an 18-year prison sentence for the burglary charge and a 10 year sentence for the aggravated robbery. Both sentences will run concurrently.

He is one three people investigators have connected to a string of robberies days of each other.

Willie Cox Jr., 20, was sentenced in October 2022 to 20 years in prison for aggravated robbery and 10 years in prison on an unrelated aggravated assault charge involving a 2019 shoot out in East Lubbock between two vehicles.

Aaliyah White, who is out on bond, is also charged with aggravated robbery. Her case is still pending.

The charges against the three stem from a Lubbock police and Lubbock County Sheriff's investigations of four separate robberies a day apart starting on Aug. 29, 2021.

Lubbock police responded about 5 a.m. that day to a robbery at a home in the 1600 block of 59th Street.

A mother of two children told police that two men forced their way into the home and threatened them with a pistol.

She said the intruders were looking for her boyfriend, however she told them he didn't live there anymore.

Then the intruders asked if she had anything they could steal. When she told them she didn't, one of the intruders ran downstairs where her children were and told her to choose which child she wanted him to shoot, the report states.

The woman said she told the intruders that she didn't have anything valuable in her home and they left.

The next day, Lubbock police responded about 2:10 p.m. to the Ace Cash Express in the 4600 block of 34th Street for a shots fired call.

An employee said an armed robber entered the business, demanded money from her, telling her, "This is no joke, I want your money."

She said she dove under the counter and pressed the silent panic button twice.

As she hid under the counter, the employee told investigators she heard another man with the robber ask, "did she just push that button?"

She said she heard a gunshot and one of the robbers trying to get through a secure door.

The employee said she crawled towards the back of the store and saw the robbers walking northbound and heard more gunshots.

An hour later, Lubbock County Sheriff's deputies responded to a robbery with shots fired at the Prize City game room in the 6300 block of East Highway 84.

Witnesses at the scene told responding deputies that three people entered the game room, fired a shot, and demanded money from the manager, according to a sheriff's office news release.

They said the robbers drove away in an older black model Mercury Grand Marquis.

About 10 p.m. that night Lubbock police responded to an armed robbery at the Burger King in the 7000 block of University Avenue.

An employee told a responding officer that he was taking a smoke break after closing and a man armed with a pistol approached him, telling him he was being robbed.

The employee said the robber pressed the gun against his back and led him back to the store and asked him where the money was.

They encountered another employee and the robber had them lead him to the safe. The first employee told the robber he didn't know the combination to the safe, but the robber gave him a code to try on the safe.

When the code didn't work, he ordered them to give him money from the cash drawer, the police report states.

Only the drive-through cash drawer contained any cash, the report states.

Investigators obtained video from security cameras at each scene that indicated the robberies involved the same people.

Detectives found video footage from businesses near the Ace Cash Express that caught a 2002 Grand Marquis park by a nearby car wash. The video showed two men exit the vehicle and head toward the cash express store around the time of the robbery.

The men in the video were wearing the same clothing as the men in the Burger King and game room robberies.

Meanwhile, Investigators sent an email to the police department and a patrol officer reported recognizing Cox from an Aug. 25, 2021 traffic stop.

During the traffic stop, Cox, who was dressed in the same clothes as one of the robbers, used his thumbprint on the traffic ticket, which matched his prints on a police database.

Investigators in the game room robbery also a finger print at the scene that matched Cox's.

Meanwhile, investigators received anonymous tips that Shedd was the other robber.

Shedd was also identified as one of the robbers in the home invasion by a photo lineup, officials said.

Investigators compared Shedd's prior book-in photos to the security camera videos of the robbers and believed he resembled one of them.

Shedd and White were arrested on Sept. 8 at apartment complex in the 500 block of Slide Road where White was a tenant.

Cox was arrested Sept. 9, 2021 and was armed with a .45 caliber handgun that he admitted he used in the Burger King robbery. He told investigators he bought the gun from Shedd.

A search of White's apartment unit yielded evidence that included 9 mm rounds, a magazine for a Glock pistol, black sweat pants with white piping that resembled the pants the robbers wore.

This article originally appeared on Lubbock Avalanche-Journal: Lubbock man admits to roles in in home invasion, robberies