ELIZABETHTOWN — A former Moriah resident who admitted he went to the Grover Hills Deli armed with a shotgun to rob the store at closing time will spend the next two to four years in state prison.

William H. “Billy” Haran Jr., 31, of Port Henry was sentenced Tuesday in Essex County Court for felony third-degree attempted robbery and misdemeanor criminal possession of stolen property.

Judge Richard Meyer sentenced Haran to two to four years in state prison for the robbery and one year in the County Jail for possessing a stolen shotgun used in the crime, with the sentences to be served concurrently.

County District Attorney Julie Garcia said Haran had been arrested 23 times before the attempted robbery. He was being sought on a warrant at the time of the hold-up, because he’d pleaded guilty to felony scheme to defraud and hadn’t shown up for sentencing.

The shotgun, which was stolen from a summer camp, has not been recovered. Haran said he threw it into a mine pit in Moriah’s Mineville hamlet.

Haran said he went to the Grover Hills Deli in Mineville on Oct. 3, 2007, hoping to steal the day’s proceeds.

When the convenience store closed that night, owner Jody Sherman and clerk Casey Perry came out and walked toward their cars. Haran then confronted them with the weapon in the parking lot and demanded the day’s receipts.

Although Haran was wearing a dark scarf as a mask, Sherman had seen him in the store in the past and said his name. He then fled into nearby woods without taking anything and was captured the next day hiding near the Van Slooten Harbour Marina in Port Henry.

Sheriff’s deputies brought Haran to court in shackles, wearing a striped prison uniform. He recently finished his sentence in state prison for the fraud conviction.

Before sentencing, Haran said he wanted to apologize to Sherman.

“I want to tell Ms. Sherman I’m sorry about the crime I committed. I’m sorry for the pain and suffering I caused her.”

He also disputed his prior criminal record.

“I might have 20 arrests on my record, but I only have two convictions,” he said.

Haran was sentenced as a prior felony offender because of the scheme to defraud conviction. He must also pay $320 in fees and surcharges.

Meyer issued an eight-year order of protection for Sherman.