A 28-year-old man who served as the lookout while two other men robbed the Sally Beauty Supply store in Norwich on July 30, 2014, was sentenced Monday in New London Superior Court to 30 months in prison followed by five years special parole.

It was the second robbery conviction for 28-year-old Efrain Andujar, who had pleaded guilty to second-degree robbery. A second defendant in the case, Emilio Rojas, also has pleaded guilty and is scheduled for sentencing on May 31. A third suspect has not been identified.

According to an arrest warrant affidavit, the sales associate was working alone at the West Main Street store when two men came in and lingered near a display of curling items. She became suspicious, the affidavit said, because men rarely come into the store. The men approached her, and one of them pulled a handgun from his waist and demanded money. Andujar admitted his role in the robbery, saying he had stayed outside the store to make sure nobody came in. He said they needed the money to buy heroin.

Attorneys said Andujar has a minimal work history and suffers from substance abuse and mental health problems. With two of his female family members watching from the gallery, Judge Hillary B. Strackbein told him that robberies terrorize the victims and asked him to consider how he would feel if the victim was one of his family members.

"You need to get a legitimate job so you can have a legitimate life," the judge said.

k.florin@theday.com