Coachella man who stole cell phone from boy pleads guilty, sentenced to 12 Years
A 24-year-old man who stole a cell phone from a 17-year-old boy at gunpoint in Coachella pleaded guilty to robbery today and was immediately sentenced to 12 years in prison.
Miguel Martinez Navarro of Coachella pleaded guilty to the charge and admitted to a sentence-enhancement of using a firearm Tuesday at the Larson Justice Center in Indio, according to court records. He was immediately sentenced to 12 years in state prison.
Navarro was arrested Feb. 23 in connection with the armed robbery that occurred Jan. 12 in Bagdouma Park, according to Sgt. David Aldrich of the Riverside County Sheriff's Department.
Aldrich said the teen was at the park when Navarro approached him and demanded his phone at gunpoint.
"The juvenile refused to give his cell phone to the suspect, so the suspect fired one round into the ground,'' Aldrich said in a statement. "The juvenile was not injured during the robbery, and no other injuries were reported due to the gun being fired into the ground."
Deputies from the Riverside County Sheriff's Department Fugitives and Warrants Enforcement Team subsequently identified Navarro in the robbery and found him Feb. 23 in the 50100 block of Balboa Street, according to Aldrich.
Navarro ran from deputies as they tried to apprehend him, but he was quickly caught and taken into custody, Aldrich said.
