Suspect Accused of Hitting Guard With Car Spared Prison Last Year

A man accused of driving his car into a Stanton security guard during a botched robbery avoided prison time last year when a judge sentenced him to six months in jail for two robberies.

David E. Villalobos faced a maximum sentence of 6 1/2 years in prison in June 1999 after he pleaded guilty to two counts of robbery and one of attempted robbery. Judge Corey Cramin, however, sentenced him to probation and the six months he had already served in jail, court records show.

Even though he was accused of three felonies in 1999, Villalobos was not prosecuted under the strict three-strikes law because he had no criminal record before those charges. He will face the full 25-years-to-life term in prison if convicted of the charges against him in this week’s attack.

Prosecutors charged him Friday with attempted murder for allegedly ramming 65-year-old security guard Ramiro Torres with his car during a foiled robbery Wednesday night in Stanton. Authorities allege that Villalobos’ brother, Marco, 23, was attempting to rob the store when Torres intervened.

Torres suffered massive head injuries and broken limbs. He remains hospitalized in extremely critical condition at Western Medical Center-Santa Ana.

The owner of a dry-cleaning business that David Villalobos robbed in February 1999 said he was surprised to learn that the convicted robber was already out of jail and implicated in an attempted murder.

“I expected the justice system would send [him] to prison so perhaps they would get out and not do it again,” said Dominic Caruso, owner of Caruso Cleaners. “You can rob someone and get nothing. You look good to your [friends] and you go out and do it again because you know what a piece of cake it was.”

Tori Richards, a spokeswoman for the Orange County district attorney’s office, said prosecutors offered David Villalobos a sentence of two years in prison if he pleaded guilty to the three charges.

Villalobos and another brother, Omar, both pleaded guilty to two counts of robbery for the Caruso Cleaners holdup and attempted robbery for a failed holdup of Elegante Cleaners in Fountain Valley, records show. Omar Villalobos received probation and one year in jail.

“This was not a plea bargain. The defendant has a right to plead guilty at any stage of the proceedings he wants to,” Richards said. “We indicated if he did that, we would be seeking two years in prison.”

Cramin could not be reached for comment Friday.

Torres was hit as he tried to protect the Bestway Supermarket’s night manager and clerk, who police said were being accosted by a masked Marco Villalobos about 11:30 p.m.

The guard was holding the older Villalobos at gunpoint when the younger brother, driving a 1980s Oldsmobile Cutlass, plowed into him, sending Torres flying about 40 feet, police said.

Maria Ramirez, the victim’s wife, described Torres as a devoted worker and avid reader who worked for decades as a gardener before turning to security work.

He had worked at the Stanton market only about a month.

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Times Staff Writer Jack Leonard contributed to this report.