Exxon thief given sentence

(Courtesy Rexburg Standard Journal)

REXBURG — The court decided to retain jurisdiction on the man who pulled a fake gun on a cashier in an attempt to rob Brad’s Exxon in Rexburg.

Jeronimo Vasquez, 18, who pleaded guilty to robbery as part of a plea agreement in March before the Idaho Seventh District Court, will be placed in a retained jurisdiction, or rider, program for 120 days after being initially sentenced for a unified 12-year prison sentence, with five years fixed and seven years indeterminate. Vasquez also received a $5,000 fine and was ordered to pay any restitution demanded by the state.

District Judge Gregory W. Moeller told Vasquez that the program is designed to give inmates the opportunity to receive training and tools for self-improvement, including job training, opportunities to take the GED and physical labor.

“I think you need some training. I think you need some help,” Moeller told Vasquez during sentencing.

As he passed the sentence on Vasquez, Moeller emphasized several times a desire to help rehabilitate Vasquez. Moeller said that given Vasquez’s age, and the fact that this was technically his first offense, as well as his having a supportive family he felt Vasquez was not beyond hope for change, although he acknowledged Vasquez’s road would be harder than most.

“Your course correction is going to need to be greater than many,” Moeller said.

Moeller also emphasized that despite it being Vasquez’s first official offense, it was still a serious crime and he needed an appropriate punishment.

“This is the type of crime that does require a serious punishment,” Moeller said.

Moeller told Vasquez that he would for certain receive either five years probation or prison depending on his performance in the rider program. The prosecution, represented by assistant county prosecutor Rob Wood, asked that Vasquez receive the full sentence for his crime.

Wood said he was shocked at the pre-sentence investigation’s recommended sentence of one year at a local jail. Wood said it was one thing to take things and quite another to take things by force, which he felt was still a very serious crime, even with a fake weapon. He said that although the weapon was fake, it still deprived the victim of the ability to feel safe. Wood also presented Denae Mickle, the Brad’s Exxon cashier whom Vasquez held at gunpoint. She told the court that the incident still causes her anxiety and that immediately after the robbery she just had to go home.

“It just causes me a lot of anxiety. That day I did end up leaving. I have since cut my hours,” Mickle said.

She said that at first she thought it was a joke, but as Vasquez continued demanding money and pointed the gun at someone else’s head, she was terrified.

“I honestly thought I was going to see a dead body,” Mickle said.

Mickle said she’s lived around guns her whole life and never once considered she might actually be threatened by one, even if it turned out to be fake. She said she has since considered getting a concealed weapons permit and takes other precautions, like keeping her car parked where she can see it. Following the statement, R. James Archibald, attorney for the defense, recommended Vasquez serve local time in a jail instead of a prison.

“He’s not someone who should go to prison. It might make him worse,” Archibald said.

He said that although for a first offense he normally asked for a withheld judgment, he felt it wasn’t appropriate considering the seriousness of Vasquez’s crime. Vasquez also addressed the court saying that he apologized for his actions.

“I want to apologize to the State of Idaho. I know what I did was wrong,” Vasquez said. He also assured the court that if given another chance he would change completely.

On Jan. 5, 2015, Vasquez came into Brad’s Exxon in Sugar City with a mask and pointed what looked like a gun at the clerk, demanding money, according to the Madison County Sheriff’s Office. The clerk gave him an undisclosed amount of money, and he stole a wallet from a customer. The Sheriff’s Office refused to disclose the amount of money stolen. Lt. Cameron Stanford of the Madison County Sheriff ’s Office said that after the theft, Vasquez took off running, and officers in the area found him in a dumpster about three blocks away.

Stanford said the weapon Vasquez used in the robbery was discovered to be an airsoft gun that had been painted black. During his change of plea hearing, Vasquez admitted to Moeller that he used a fake gun to rob the convenience store at Brad’s Exxon./p>

“I entered Brad’s Exxon with the intention of stealing. I entered and I took out a piece. I pointed it at the cashier,” Vasquez said./p>

He said he stole nearly $130, and the gun used was a fake, intended to look like a real gun.

This article was written by Rexburg Standard Journal Reporter Caleb Despain. It is used here with permission. The original article can be viewed at www.uvsj.com.