Man found guilty in Upland jewelry store robbery, pistol-whipping

Pictured above: The jewelry story owner who was allegedly pistol-whipped by Jason Robinson. Below: Jason Robinson

RANCHO CUCAMONGA -- A man accused of robbing an Upland jewelry store in 2006 and pistol-whipping the owner was found guilty of seven felonies by a jury this week in West Valley Superior Court.

Jason Robinson, 26, was accused of robbing My Jeweler in the Colonies Crossroads shopping center on Aug. 16, 2006 with a group of co-conspirators.

Prosecutors said Robinson, of Victorville, tied up the owner's teenage daughter, then pistol-whipped the owner in the head as the girl watched.

Robinson and his co-conspirators stole $100,000 worth of jewelry from the store, Upland police said after the men were arrested.

On Thursday, a jury found Robinson guilty of one count of burglary, three counts of robbery, two counts of assault with a semiautomatic rifle, and one count of torture.

Robinson and two other men arrived at about 10:20 a.m. at the store, located in the 1900 block of Campus Avenue.

The men looked at watches in the store, and when the owner walked over to help them, one of the men pulled out a gun, the owner's daughter said following the incident.

The robbers tied up the girl in the back of the store, and threatened her with a gun when she attempted to help her father, the girl said following the incident.

One of the robbers -- later identified by authorities as Robinson -- hit the owner in the head with his pistol several times when the owner initially refused to disclose the location of money in the store, the owner's daughter said.

A co-defendant in Robinson's case -- Issac Lee Williams, 29 -- took a plea bargain from prosecutors during the second day of testimony in this month's trial.

Williams was sentenced to 20 years and four months in state prison on Aug. 13.

Three other men originally charged with robbery and other counts were dismissed from the case in 2006, according to online court records.

Following Robinson's guilty verdicts Thursday, a second stage of the trial was held to determine his criminal history.

Jurors are scheduled to continue deliberations over Robinson's criminal history Monday in West Valley Superior Court.