HOMELESS THIRD STRIKER SENTENCED TO 21 YEARS TO LIFE IN PRISON FOR ROBBING AND ASSAULTING SANTA ANA BUSINESS OWNER

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Case # 17CF0616    

Date: August 11, 2017

HOMELESS THIRD STRIKER SENTENCED TO 21 YEARS TO LIFE IN PRISON FOR ROBBING AND ASSAULTING SANTA ANA BUSINESS OWNER

*Police used “Find My iPhone” to locate defendant in a tent behind Orange County Superior Courthouse

SANTA ANA, Calif. – A homeless third striker was sentenced today to 21 years to life in state prison for robbing and assaulting a Santa Ana business owner.

Circumstances of the Case

• On March 9, 2017, at approximately 8:30 p.m., Gonzalez entered a beauty supply business on West 3^rd Street in the city of Santa Ana.
• The defendant brandished a black pellet gun which appeared to be a real handgun, pistol-whipped the owner of the store, and dragged the victim into a small back room.
• Gonzalez restrained the victim and demanded money while holding the pellet gun against the victim’s head, threatening to kill her.
• The defendant then stole the victim’s iPhone from the front counter and fled.
• Santa Ana Police Department (SAPD) officers responded to the scene, located the victim, and were able to use the “Find My iPhone” application to trace the victim’s phone to a tent located in the Plaza of the Flags near the Orange County Superior Courthouse.
• SAPD officers located the victim’s iPhone near the defendant’s tent, and arrested Gonzalez.

Prosecutor: Deputy District Attorney Shiba Etemadian, Felony Panel.