LOS ANGELES
A South Los Angeles man was convicted Tuesday for the armed robbery of an armored truck in Hawthorne on Valentine’s Day 2022, officials stated.
During the heist, over $166,000 in cash and checks were stolen, and a gun was fired after the truck’s driver was forced to the ground at gunpoint, according to authorities.
Deneyvous Hobson, 38, from Los Angeles’ West Adams neighborhood, was found guilty of conspiracy to commit robbery (Hobbs Act), robbery under the Hobbs Act, using a firearm in a violent crime, and being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition.
“Our community will not accent violent gun crime, and armed and violent felons will be held accountable,” said U.S. Attorney Martin Estrada. “I commend our prosecutors and our federal and local law enforcement partners for bringing this defendant to justice. With Operation Safe Cities, we will remain vigilant in protecting the public from gun violence.”
During a six-day trial, officials stated evidence revealed that on February 14, 2022, Deneyvous Hobson, 38, and James Russell Davis, 36, both from Los Angeles’ West Adams neighborhood, robbed a Sectran Security Services armored truck after ambushing the driver, who had just finished servicing an ATM.
Three weeks before the robbery, Hobson and Davis scouted the Wescom Credit Union in Hawthorne, observing a Sectran driver servicing the ATM.
On the robbery day, Davis acted as a lookout and conducted countersurveillance nearby.
That morning, Hobson and two accomplices arrived in a white Honda Accord at the credit union. They confronted the driver, identified as “J.G.,” at gunpoint, forced him to the ground, and took his service weapon, a.40-caliber handgun, officials stated.
They then stole about $166,640 in cash and checks from the ATM. As the group fled, one of Hobson’s accomplices fired a 9mm semi-automatic handgun.
The following day, Hobson attempted to sell the same 9mm handgun for $800, referring to it in text messages as a weapon used in the robbery, according to court records, according to officials.
In October 2022, Hobson was found in illegal possession of a 9mm pistol and ammunition. Due to prior felony convictions in 2003 for robbery and assault with a deadly weapon, Hobson was prohibited from owning firearms or ammunition.
U.S. District Judge Fernando L. Aenlle-Rocha scheduled Hobson’s sentencing for April 18. He faces up to life in federal prison. Hobson has been in custody since February 2023.
Davis pleaded guilty on February 16 to one count of Hobbs Act robbery and one count of discharging a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence.
June 10, Judge Aenlle-Rocha sentenced Davis to 166 months in federal prison and ordered him to pay $166,640 in restitution to Sectran Security Services. Davis has been in federal custody since March 2023.
The FBI, the Los Angeles Police Department, the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department, the Inglewood Police Department, and the Hawthorne Police Department investigated this matter.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Kevin J. Butler and Jena A. MacCabe of the Violent and Organized Crime Section and Jason C. Pang of the General Crimes Section are prosecuting this case.