Two men sentenced for home invasion robbery at illegal Sacramento gambling house
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- A judge sentenced two men for a 2018 robbery at an illegal gambling house in Sacramento.
- One of the men was sentenced to more than 300 years in prison.
- Victims in the robbery were thrown to the ground and robbed at gunpoint.
A judge on Friday sentenced two men, one of them to more than 300 years in prison, for a home invasion robbery eight years ago at an illegal gambling house in south Sacramento where victims were thrown to the ground and robbed at gunpoint.
Judge Michael Sweet sentenced John Edward Blount, 51, to 301 years to life in prison for the robbery in the 2018 break-in, the Sacramento County District Attorney’s Office announced Monday in a news release.
The judge sentenced Eddie Lee White, 37, to 40 years and eight months in prison for his role in the robbery.
On Nov. 21, a jury found Blount and White guilty of six counts of robbery and three counts of attempted robbery. Blount also was convicted of being a felon in possession of a firearm.
Prosecutors said Blount’s conviction included enhancements that lengthen his prison sentence for previous convictions of robbery and assault with a firearm considered strikes under California’s “Three Strikes” law.
The home invasion robbery was reported about 1:20 a.m. Jan. 22, 2018, at the home in the 3700 block of 42nd Avenue, just east of Franklin Boulevard.
Prosecutors said Blount and White, armed with guns, entered the garage at the home being used as an illegal gambling house and held everyone inside at gunpoint.
Blount and White robbed money and personal items from the victims, many of whom were thrown to the ground, had furniture thrown at them and physically assaulted, according to the District Attorney’s Office.
Sacramento County sheriff’s officials have said that a woman, who watched the home invasion robbery unfold on a video security camera system from another part of the house, called 911 that night to report the robbery in the garage.
The woman told sheriff’s officials that the men demanded money and other items from people playing cards and possibly gambling in the garage. Sheriff’s officials have said that at least four robbers left the home as sheriff’s deputies arrived, two of whom were caught following a search of the area.
Investigators recovered one gun believed to have been used in the home invasion robbery, according to the Sheriff’s Office. The names of the arrested suspects were not released at that time.
Prosecutors said Blount and White left the home as deputies arrived, but the two men were later apprehended with many of the victims’ items in their pockets.
It’s unclear whether investigators captured or identified any other suspects who fled the 42nd Avenue home that night.
