A 50-year-old convicted felon who committed a half-dozen robberies targeting pharmacies throughout the Inland Empire while wearing surgical masks was sentenced Monday to more than nine years in federal prison.
David Anthony Battle of Moreno Valley pleaded guilty in March to six counts of interference with commerce by robbery.
U.S. District Judge Jesus Bernal in Riverside handed down the upper term sentence after considering the U.S. Attorney’s Office’s court briefs.
“Although he gained thousands of dollars through his robberies, the traumatic impact of (Battle’s) crimes is much more consequential than his selfish monetary gains,” according to the prosecution’s submission to the court. “It is impossible to quantify the true psychological and mental harms caused by (his) crimes.”
The defendant robbed six pharmacies — Walgreens, CVS and Rite Aid outlets — in Moreno Valley, Colton and San Bernardino between July 6, 2020, and Aug. 10, 2020, according to prosecutors.
He additionally attempted two other holdups in Moreno Valley that were unsuccessful.
Battle wore a medical mask covering his mouth and nose and brandished what looked like a pistol, demanding that money be removed from cash registers and deposited into bags, prosecutors said.
The holdups netted $5,453, though almost half of that was the result of just one robbery at a Walgreens in Moreno Valley, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
The convicted felon was arrested after law enforcement reviewed store surveillance videos and matched his identity. A black BB-gun-style pistol was found on the ground near Battle during his arrest, prosecutors said.
The defendant has perpetrated offenses going back to 1989, and over that period of time, he has racked up 46 felony convictions, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
In the agency’s memo to the court, it noted that “history shows he has been incapable of rehabilitation.”
One conviction includes impersonating a public safety official.
The FBI, Riverside County Sheriff’s Department, San Bernardino and Colton police departments investigated the robbery series.