Leader of Violent Robbery Spree Receives Attempted Murder Sentence

The man who led a violent robbery spree in Germantown last summer is now in prison for attempted murder.

Travis Mason, 21, of Germantown, received 145-year prison sentence for second-degree attempted murder, assault and using a handgun to commit a felony. Circuit Court Judge Eric M. Johnson delivered the sentence Wednesday, May 18, suspending all but 35 years.

Montgomery County Police identified Mason and three other Germantown men as those responsible for a series of armed robberies in Germantown and Gaithersburg, culminating in a shooting Sept. 6, 2010. According to records filed in Circuit Court, Mason and Anthony Moore, 19, Paris Lyn, 21, and Jose Contreras, 19, tried to rob a Germantown resident on Moon Ridge Drive. The victim, who had already been pistol-whipped twice, was shot in the legs while trying to prevent the men from entering his house, where his wife and young child were inside, court records state.

Mason was apprehended two days later, after police responded to reports of shots fired in at residence off Ashbrook Court. Police linked Mason to the shooting several other robberies from a gun they found under a stolen car. According to court records, the car was taken from a Prince George’s County, Md., home. The victim was reportedly forced from the car by gunpoint and ordered to go inside his house. He and another woman were ordered to lie on the ground face down, their hands and feet bound by Duct tape, according to court records.

The assault and gun charges stem from a robbery that occurred days before the Sept. 6 shooting. According to court documents, Mason and Contreras reportedly broke into Middlebrook Mini Mart in Germantown — firing a gun to break the glass to enter the store — and stole 24 lottery tickets.

Two people saw the men and indicted that they were calling police. Mason fired a shot toward the witnesses in order to silence them, according to court records. A tow truck driver reportedly witnessed the shooting and flashed his lights. Mason shot twice at the tow truck driver, according to court records, with one of the shots landing in the grill of the truck.

Contreras is scheduled for sentencing Thursday, June 30. Under plea deal, Contreras has entered a peal of guilty for assault, armed robbery, using of a handgun in commission of a felony, conspiracy to commit robbery and conspiracy to commit armed robbery.

Moore was sentenced to 20 years for armed robbery — with eight years suspended — plus five years supervised probation.

Lyn was sentenced to 15 years in prison — with 14 years, four months and 17 days suspended — plus four years unsupervised probation.