A 21-year-old probationer accused of joining a cohort in perpetrating a home invasion targeting a Woodcrest senior, who was assaulted and bound during the holdup, must stand trial for robbery and other offenses, a judge ruled Wednesday.
Luis Alverto Talavera Huato of Perris was arrested last year following a Riverside County Sheriff’s Department investigation into the break-in on Washington Street, near Hermosa Drive.
At the end of a preliminary hearing Wednesday, Superior Court Judge Gail O’Rane found there was sufficient evidence to bound Huato over for trial on the robbery count, along with false imprisonment, burglary, elder abuse, auto theft and theft of a firearm.
The judge scheduled a post-preliminary hearing arraignment for Aug. 27 at the Riverside Hall of Justice.
The defendant is being held in lieu of $1 million bail at the Robert Presley Jail.
According to sheriff’s Sgt. Patrick Montalvo, shortly before 3 p.m. Oct. 10, 2024, the defendant and an unknown co-conspirator forced their way into the victim’s residence, confronting the elderly occupant, whose name was not released.
“(They) entered his home, assaulted him and tied him up before burglarizing the place,” Montalvo alleged.
The burglars fled a short time later, and the victim was able to free himself of the restraints and call 911, according to the sergeant.
Paramedics and patrol deputies reached the house within minutes. The senior was treated for minor injuries but not hospitalized, Montalvo said.
“Deputies learned the suspects fled the residence with several handguns and two vehicles,” he said.
A few hours later, deputies in Perris spotted one of the stolen cars and called for a sheriff’s helicopter crew to follow it. Montalvo said the driver — later identified as Huato — fled when the patrol unit signaled him to pull over, culminating in a pursuit that went westbound into Good Hope.
In the area of Old Road and Gumwood Court, the defendant lost control and plowed into a roadside fence, causing a fire in the car’s engine compartment, the sheriff’s spokesman said.
He said Huato ran away and hid in the brush. County fire personnel arrived moments later and doused the flames consuming the vehicle.
With the help of a K-9 unit, deputies found Huato, who was taken into custody without further incident. He wasn’t injured.
“The second suspect was not located,” Montalvo said, adding that the ensuing investigation never uncovered the man’s identity.
Court records show Huato has prior misdemeanor convictions for illegal possession of a firearm in a vehicle and possession of a handgun in violation of California Department of Justice registration regulations.