ROCK HILL, S.C. -- A York County jury has convicted a man accused of several violent robberies on a charge of armed robbery and possession of a weapon during a violent crime.

The jury deliberated for about 90 minutes before announcing the verdict. Phillip Watts Jr. was sentenced to the maximum 35 years in prison.

Watts, 20, is charged in six other armed robberies, during which four people were shot -- two clerks and two customers. Those cases have not gone to trial.

"I'm just glad they got him. I'm glad somebody's paying for what happened to me," said Annette Hicks, the convenience store clerk robbed by Watts.

Watt’s trial for the Jan. 20 robbery of the One-Stop Exxon on West Main Street in Rock Hill began Monday. Police said it happened before Watts became increasingly violent and began shooting at people. But Hicks said it was terrifying to see a gun pointed at her, and she’s still upset.

"It hurt me real bad," she said. “It's nothing I don't ever want to go through again."

Watts' attorney, John Freeman, argued that no one got a good look at the armed robber that night, and customers outside were too far away to really describe him. He also said Watts had an alibi because his younger sister had seen him at home late on the night of the robbery and on the morning after.

She testified that he was asleep on the couch when she left for school.

Later, solicitor Kevin Brackett pointed out that the day after the robbery was the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday, and there was no school.

The biggest weapon prosecutors had against Watts, however, was his own confession to police. Watts described the crime in detail, including what he wore that night and the getaway car, which belonged to his girlfriend.

Brackett read part of that statement to the jury.

"I robbed the store across from Northwestern High School. I drove Stephanie's burgundy Dodge Durango, and people saw me leave," the statement said.

Outside the presence of the jury, Watts took the stand earlier in the week and denied making that confession to police. He also denied that the signature on the confession was his. However, a handwriting expert determined that it was his signature.

The jury was required to hear the case in a vacuum. They never heard anything about the other robberies and shootings Watts is charged with.

Both sides worked to make sure they focused on just this one case. That's because, by law, prosecutors must try all seven cases separately. Brackett served Watts notice after the trial that he'll seek life in prison without parole when the next case comes to court.

Freeman said he'll likely appeal the conviction.

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