A Greensburg teen has been ordered to serve up to 40 months in prison for his role in an armed robbery last year in Hempfield.

Cayden Essway, 17, was prosecuted as an adult and pleaded guilty in May to one felony count of robbery and a misdemeanor weapons offense.

Essway’s sentence stems from an April 5, 2024 incident on Mt. Pleasant Road in which police said he and another teen disarmed a man then held a gun to the victim’s head and punched him about a dozen times before taking his clothes and shoes.

Last year, a Westmoreland County judge denied Essway’s attempt to have his case transferred to juvenile court, where, if convicted, he could not be held in custody beyond his 21st birthday.

Essway had been held in the juvenile wing of the Lawrence County jail, but will be transferred to a state prison that houses teens and young adults sentenced to serve time in a Department of Corrections facility.

Westmoreland County Common Pleas Court Judge Tim Krieger imposed what he said was a mitigated sentence that required Essway to serve at least 20 months behind bars.

Essway faced a potential maximum penalty of 20 years in prison.

The judge said Essway’s progress since his arrest warranted a less severe penalty, but rejected a defense request for his immediate release. The judge said Essway needed more time in confinement to complete ongoing rehabilitation programs, according to defense attorney Tim Andrews.

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