A 27-year-old man who stole cash from an Eastvale grocery store, then fled with an alleged accomplice to a house pleaded guilty Thursday to grand theft and was immediately sentenced to six months in jail and two years’ probation.
Charles Ray Sanford Jr. of Eastvale admitted the felony count during a status hearing Thursday at the Riverside Hall of Justice.
Riverside County Superior Court Judge Gary Polk accepted the plea and imposed the sentence stipulated under the agreement between the prosecution and defense.
Sanford and 26-year-old Elijah Alonzo Tucker of San Bernardino were arrested last month following a sheriff’s department investigation into the theft.
Tucker is free on a $30,000 bond and is slated to be arraigned in February on a charge of grand theft.
According to sheriff’s Sgt. Jonathan Bodnar, at 9:25 p.m. on Nov. 21, Sanford walked into the Ralphs in the 12000 block of Limonite Avenue, near Interstate 15, confronted a clerk and forcibly grabbed an undisclosed amount of cash from a register.
“The suspect fled from the store to an awaiting four-door Volkswagen,” Bodnar said.
He said that Sanford and Tucker sped away from the location in the VW as store staff called 911.
“Deputies immediately conducted an extensive search for the suspect vehicle,” the sergeant said, adding that it was spotted parked outside a residence in the 6000 block of Fairlane Avenue.
A search warrant was obtained and served at the property, where Sanford and Tucker were taken into custody without incident and “evidence of the crime, including the majority of the stolen money, was recovered,” Bodnar said.
Sanford had no prior felony convictions in Riverside County. Tucker also has no documented priors.