Man convicted of armed robbery sentenced to 13 years

A North Shore man pleaded guilty today and was immediately sentenced to 13 years in state prison, and his accomplice was handed a five-year term, for an armed robbery that left a market employee hospitalized with major injuries.

Jacob Lee Couie, 22, pleaded guilty to one count each of mayhem and armed robbery for the March 13, 2015, heist at Reyes Market in North Shore, with sentence enhancements for inflicting great bodily injury, using a weapon during a felony and participation in a criminal street gang.

Rafael Isaias Murua, 27, pleaded guilty to being an accessory after the fact, with a sentence enhancement for gang participation. Prosecutors contended that Couie committed the robbery at Murua’s behest, wearing a ski mask and using a baseball bat to beat the store clerk before fleeing.

Murua, a documented Mecca gang member, was not present during the robbery, but police later found a baseball bat and ski mask at his home. During a preliminary hearing last September, Couie’s attorney, Arnold W. Lieman, argued that there was no link between the robbery and the gang.

However, sentence enhancing allegations regarding criminal gang activity were maintained by Superior Court Judge Graham A. Cribbs and added years to each man’s sentence.

Murua has a criminal history that includes drug possession and vehicle theft arrests, according to court records, but Couie had no prior arrests or criminal history outside of the robbery.