Two men pleaded no contest Tuesday to multiple daytime robberies, including one in which a 64-year-old man was allegedly pistol-whipped in a grocery store parking lot in the Rowland Heights area.
Dangelo Thomas, 26, was immediately sentenced to 21 years and four months in state prison following his plea to robbery involving the July 9, 2022, attack, which was caught on video, and two other robberies in Glendale in April 2022 and Temple City in May 2022, according to Deputy District Attorney Phil Stirling.
Co-defendant Demoryie Watts, 22, was sentenced to 16 years in state prison after his no contest plea to two counts of robbery for the July 9, 2022, attack on the male shopper at the 99 Ranch Market, along with another robbery of a 51-year-old woman at the same location that day.
A third defendant, Eric Burham, 22, pleaded no contest to two counts of robbery involving two hold-ups in Glendale, including one in which a Rolex watch, jewelry and cash were stolen from a 40-year-old man.
All three defendants admitted an allegation that they personally used a firearm, according to Stirling, who handled the case with colleague Cesar Rodriguez.
At a news conference announcing the case last year, District Attorney George Gascón said, “These were brazen robberies — all of which occurred during the day and they’re very troubling to all of us … The victims in these cases were targeted because they were wearing expensive jewelry, carrying designer items and … large amounts of cash.”
Gascón said the male victim in the Rowland Heights attack was pistol-whipped and injured as he and the woman loaded items into their vehicle outside the store.
Thomas and Watts were arrested in August 2022 by the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department, while Burham was taken into custody last October by Glendale police, according to jail records.
They have remained behind bars since then.