Two men who were involved in a home invasion in Mission in 2009 were recently sentenced to jail terms.
Darren Paul Deadder, 32, and Robert Francis Wright, 29, both pleaded guilty to robbery with a firearm. Deadder received a three-year prison term and Wright was sentenced to 18 months.
This is in addition to the 42 months' credit they were each given for time already served.
A total of five people were charged in connection with the incident that occurred on April 28, 2009.
Court documents state that two men were with co-accused Ashley Lindgren, who knocked on the door of a home on Catherwood Road in a rural Mission area just after midnight.
The home was occupied by a couple with a small child. The male resident answered the door and had a brief conversation with Lindgren, who did not enter the home. He closed the door, but before he could lock it, the two men burst into the residence.
They were masked and wearing dark hooded jackets. One was carrying a handgun, and struck the man in the head, either with the gun or his fist.
The intruders then demanded cash and valuables. One held the couple at gunpoint in the kitchen, while the other ransacked their bedroom.
The two took more than $6,000 in cash, jewelry and other valuables before fleeing to a van.
The couple notified police, who stopped the vehicle in another area of Mission. As the van was slowing, Wright fled the vehicle and ran away.
A police dog tracked him across a creek and found him hiding beneath a trailer.He had $4,000 cash on him and jewelry which the couple later identified as theirs.
Meanwhile, Deadder and Lindgren remained in the van with the driver, Terence Derouin. Police found a loaded Browning 9 mm handgun with ten rounds in its magazine, as well as another clip containing ammunition, court documents state.
The van contained another $2,000 in cash and more of the victims' jewelry.
All four individuals were charged in connection to the robbery.
A fifth person, Daniel Doherty, who is Deadder's cousin, was charged for helping to plan the offence at a hotel room in Mission. He knew the sister of the female victim and was aware that cash and valuables were kept in the victims' home, according to the court documents.
Doherty went to the robbery scene in a separate vehicle and had the van follow him, the documents state.
Charges were later stayed against Lindgren and Derouin. Doherty pleaded guilty in separate proceedings to robbery with a firearm and was sentenced to 18 months, in addition to 42 months' credit for time served.
Supreme Court Justice Terence Schultes said in sentencing Deadder and Doherty, he considered that the offence had been planned.
" ... the planning included knowledge that a gun would be employed and that a small child would be present."
The judge said another aggravating factor was that Deadder had been convicted in February 2009 of a separate robbery and was given one day in prison, on top of the 4 1/2 years' credit for time already served.
He gave Wright a lighter sentence, saying there was no evidence that he was "the mastermind" of the offence.
Both men have been enrolled in substance abuse programs and other courses while in prison, the court was told.