AUGUSTA — A Winslow man will serve at least four years in prison after pleading guilty to armed robbery charges following an encounter last summer in which authorities say he used a BB gun to rob two people.

Mark A. Kennedy, 58, received a 10-year sentence Thursday morning during a short hearing at the Capital Judicial Center, but Justice William Stokes suspended six years from the sentence.

Kennedy also received three years of probation and was ordered to pay $500 in restitution for the robbery, which occurred early on the morning of July 27 on Halifax Street in Winslow.

He was convicted of one count of robbery, a class A felony, and additional counts of criminal threatening with a dangerous weapon, illegal possession of a firearm, and unlawful possession of heroin. Kennedy had pleaded guilty to those charges in early April.

Kennedy had been “eating pizza, drinking soda and having rap battles” with the two victims, a couple, in the hours before the robbery, Winslow police wrote in an affidavit at the time of his arrest.

Police say that Kennedy left the residence, then returned twice. The first time, he reportedly asked the couple for his cellphone, but they couldn’t find it.

He then returned about 15 minutes later, brandishing a gun, threatening to kill the victims, and telling them to give him everything they had, according to the affidavit. The victims, who reported the robbery at 12:56 a.m., told authorities that Kennedy then left with their cellphones and $100 in cash, but returned 10 minutes later to return one of the phones.

Later, police stopped Kennedy’s car and arrested him. In earlier court proceedings, a prosecutor has said that Kennedy used a BB gun in the robbery. He has prior robbery and drug convictions in Bronx, New York.

“By his own admission, he was running drugs for the two alleged victims,” said David Spencer, an assistant district attorney, during Kennedy’s initial appearance in court last summer. “He admitted threatening them with a BB gun; he meant to scare them.”

Neither victim was at the hearing Thursday. Kennedy said almost nothing during the sentencing, as his attorney, Brad Grant, spoke with Stokes.

In handing down the sentence, Stokes did suspend a $400 fine, arguing that the restitution is more important.

“I’d really rather have (Kennedy focus) on making the restitution of $500, OK? Not on the state getting its fine,” Stokes said.

Kennedy has been in jail since his arrest nine months ago. Last fall, he was indicted on additional charges of burglary, theft by unauthorized taking or transfer, and unlawful possession of scheduled drugs, but those charges have been dismissed.

Kennedy has a young child in Waterville and has lived in Maine for the past two years, working at Walmart and Dunkin’ Donuts, a defense attorney has said in the past.

Charles Eichacker — 621-5642

ceichacker@centralmaine.com

Twitter: @ceichacker

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