Man wants to back out of plea bargain in San Bernardino rape, robbery
A man who pleaded guilty to charges, under the terms of a plea bargain, in the 2001 rape and robbery of a 43-year-old store clerk at a Fifth Street business now wants to back out of his agreement.
Harry Vasquez Vega, 35, told Judge Donna Gunnell Garza that he wanted to withdraw his guilty pleas during proceedings Tuesday in San Bernardino Superior Court, according to court records. Vega was in court for a scheduled sentencing.
The court appointed another lawyer to handle the possible plea withdrawal for Vega and set a court date of Oct. 22 for the lawyers to get a copy of the hearing transcripts. Vega agreed to waive time for his sentencing.
Vega pleaded guilty to charges of rape by force, robbery and related special allegations during court proceedings on Sept. 2, according to superior court records.
Vega was in prison for robbery in 2001. San Bernardino police were alerted to him as a suspect in the rape when a DNA sample he submitted upon being released from prison, as required by state law, matched evidence recovered from the crime scene, according to authorities.
Vega was arrested in the San Bernardino case in June 2007 at his home in Sacramento.
The store clerk told detectives that a man came into the store, and they discussed items he wanted to buy, according to court testimony. The woman walked away briefly to answer a telephone call.
But when she came back, the man held a knife to her back and walked her to a back area in the store, according to police. The man took money from the cash register and a necklace from the woman before raping her, authorities said.
Leave a comment