Case closed: Final suspect in pair of vicious armed robberies sentenced

From left, Jacob Barrett-Carr. Cory-Lyn Luther, Rian Luther and Amber Glennon. (Police mugshots)

DOVER - The final suspect in two brutal armed robberies that rocked Rochester a year ago - and who served up several surprises to the court during his incarceration awaiting trial - threw a final curveball earlier this week on the day of jury selection when he abruptly agreed to plead guilty and accept a judge's sentencing sans plea deal.

Rian Luther, 34, of 34 Chestnut St., Rochester was sentenced to between six and 15 years in state prison for first-degree assault, robbery, conspiracy to commit robbery, falsifying evidence and violating probation.

Luther had frustrated court officials the past several months after he agreed to plea deals and was transported to Superior Court on three separate occasions only to renege at the last minute.

After the third failed attempt at a plea agreement this spring, a visibly annoyed Judge Mark E. Howard told him flatly, "No more plea deals."

Jury selection was supposed to begin on Tuesday, but Luther gave the court one final surprise agreeing to offer up a so-called naked plea, giving a judge wide latitude in sentencing.

In a plea deal worked out with prosecutors, another suspect in the back-to-back May 2016 incident, Amber Glennon, 23, of Hanson St., Rochester pleaded guilty on Monday to two counts of conspiracy to commit robbery charges and one count of robbery in connection with the robberies. Her sentencing is set for next month.

The other two suspects in the case, Cory-Lynn Luther, 27, of 34 Chestnut St., Rian Luther's wife; and Jacob Barrett-Carr, 23, of Somersworth, have already pleaded guilty. Cory-Lyn Luther is to be sentenced in September, and Barrett-Carr pleaded guilty in April and was sentenced to three to eight years in prison.

Rian Luther could have been given 60 years if he had been convicted at trial.

The March 21 attack occurred at the Sunset Motel, where it was alleged that the four did act in commission of the crime when they did at least one or all of the following:

• Obtained two BB guns that looked to be real guns
• Obtained masks to wear during the offense
• Obtained info as to location of drugs that were the target of the robbery
• Drove to the Sunset Village Motel on Milton Road in Rochester
• Assaulted a male and threatened a female inside a motel room.

Specifically, Barrett-Carr is alleged to have put a gun to the groin area of the male victim while threatening both, while Rian Luther is alleged to have hit the male victim in the head.

The home invasion at the motel occurred around 4:45 a.m.

The next morning around 2:10 a.m. Rochester Police responded to 30 Front St. for another home invasion in which a male was attacked and beaten with a baseball bat while inside his home.

Upon police arriving on scene they were able to learn the victim had been home when two males entered his residence one striking the victim in the head with a bat and the other pointing a handgun at him. The victim was able to escape from his residence and call 911 as the suspects fled. The victim was transported to Frisbie Memorial hospital for non-life threatening injuries by EMS.