Columbus, Ohio – A Columbus man was sentenced in U.S. District Court to three consecutive life sentences, along with an additional 60 months to be served consecutively, for a string of calculated murders committed as part of a drug robbery scheme. The defendant, 44-year-old Larry J. Williams, Jr., also known as “J Streets” and “J,” was convicted of 16 charges, including murder, obstruction, and narcotics conspiracy. He received five other life sentences, which will run concurrently.
The convictions stem from a narcotics conspiracy that escalated into murder and a gruesome attempt to hide the evidence by dismembering and burying bodies. According to trial testimony and court documents, the series of crimes began in June 2018 when Williams joined a group planning to rob a local marijuana dealer. The robbery was carried out at gunpoint at a residence on 847 E.N. Broadway in Columbus, targeting the dealer’s drugs and cash.
During the robbery, Williams fatally shot 23-year-old Connor Reynolds, a resident of Grove City who happened to be inside the home at the time. In an effort to protect himself and the broader criminal enterprise, Williams then murdered two others who knew about the crime.
Murders to Eliminate Witnesses
In August 2018, two months after the fatal robbery, Williams killed Henry Watson, a 52-year-old from Columbus, because he believed Watson might tell authorities about Reynolds’s murder. Immediately afterward, Williams murdered 48-year-old Tera Pennington, also from Columbus, to silence her as a potential witness.
Following the killings, Williams ordered others to clean up the crime scene using bleach and chemicals. To further obstruct justice, he directed accomplices to dismember and transport the bodies of Watson and Pennington, ultimately burying them in a separate location. These chilling efforts to erase all traces of the murders underscored the methodical and brutal nature of Williams’s crimes.
Drug Operations and Overdoses
Investigators also discovered that Williams operated a drug house at 121 Stevens Avenue in Columbus, where he sold fentanyl, heroin, methamphetamine, and cocaine. Addicts were allowed to use narcotics at the location, and on more than one occasion, individuals overdosed in the basement. Co-conspirators administered Narcan to revive users, highlighting the ongoing danger and recklessness of the operation.
In total, 13 defendants have now been convicted and sentenced in relation to this extensive case. One of the co-defendants, 41-year-old Patrick Foster of Columbus, was also sentenced earlier this week. Foster received 70 months in prison for his role in helping dispose of the bodies of Watson and Pennington.
Foster reportedly instructed three other co-defendants to assist Williams. The group jackhammered the concrete floor of a Sullivant Avenue residence, which Foster owned, to create space to bury the dismembered remains. They then covered the bodies with freshly poured concrete in an effort to permanently hide the evidence.
Final Judgment
The sentencing marks the end of a long legal process that followed a three-week trial in December 2024. Williams, who was first indicted in September 2021, was found guilty on all counts. The sentence reflects the severity of his crimes and the immense pain inflicted on victims and their families.
“This case represents one of the most violent and coldly calculated drug-related crimes in recent memory,” prosecutors said. “The sentence ensures that Larry Williams will never again pose a threat to society.”
The federal case is a stark reminder of the devastating consequences of narcotics-driven violence and the extensive efforts sometimes made to conceal heinous crimes.
