Not-guilty pleas re-entered in Claremont home-invasion beating

Two Pomona men accused of beating a Claremont man nearly to death during a home-invasion robbery re-entered not guilty pleas in Pomona Superior Court this morning to attempted murder and other charges.

Robert LaMonte Jones, who turned 21 today, and Messigh Liketin Perry-Garner, 16, are set to next appear in court May 11 for a trial readiness hearing. They each remain jailed in lieu of bail, a clerk in Pomona's Dept. N courtroom said.

Jones and Perry-Garner are accused of beating 61-year-old Vincent Gottuso with guns on Jan. 20 when Gottuso returned home to find the men burglarizing his home in the 700 block of West Tenth Street.

Gottuso, a Realtor with offices in Claremont and Upland, was initially hospitalized in critical condition.

Click here to read a blog post on Jones and Perry-Garner's March 2 preliminary hearing.