Man Plea-Bargains in ‘Tijuana Bandit’ Bank Robberies

A man accused of being the “Tijuana bandit” pleaded guilty to lesser charges in U.S. District Court on Friday in an effort to avoid being tried on two counts of armed robbery.

David Eugene Cabrera, 38, of Orange was arrested Nov. 15 in the robberies of two banks. He pleaded not guilty at his arraignment in December.

In a last-minute bargaining session, Cabrera agreed to plead guilty on two counts of unarmed robbery, his attorney said.

“We decided that this would be the best bet, since the only thing we contested was the fact that he had a gun,” said Maria Valdez, deputy federal public defender.

“The presence of a firearm greatly increases the sentence a person will get, and our evidence shows he didn’t have one. So we fought for this.”

Cabrera faces up to 20 years in prison when he is sentenced March 20.

Cabrera was accused of robbing American Interstate Bank on Nov. 13 and American Savings & Loan on Nov. 15.

A teller at American Interstate Bank had told authorities that Cabrera had been armed with a handgun when he slipped her a note demanding cash.

At the time of his arrest at his home in Orange, Cabrera possessed a toy replica of a .45-caliber handgun, according to police.

But Valdez said a bank surveillance camera had shown that Cabrera was not armed during the Nov. 15 robbery.

Cabrera was also a suspect in five other October and November bank robberies in Orange County. However, witnesses failed to identify him in police lineups.

Police dubbed the robber the “Tijuana bandit” because he sported a straw hat with “Tijuana” embroidered on the band.