Four involved in staged burglary make plea bargain

BARSTOW • A group of four Barstow residents charged for their involvement in a June staged burglary and subsequent non-fatal shooting made plea bargain agreements to lesser charges on Friday.

Angelina Benavidez, 35, Claudio Jimenez, 32, Timothy Hoody, 45, and Kimberly “Nonie” Chavez, 33, all faced burglary, attempted murder, conspiracy, and gang-related charges in the June 12 staged burglary of Benavidez’s home. During the burglary Benavidez’s 17-year-old daughter, who was not connected to the crime, was shot at.

Benavidez pleaded no contest to one count of burglary, Jimenez pleaded guilty to assault with a deadly weapon other than a firearm, Hoody  pleaded guilty to being an accessory to a felony, and Chavez pleaded guilty to one count of burglary. The group of four changed their pleas at their readiness hearing at the Barstow Courthouse on Friday.

Deputy District Attorney Scott Byrd said that he recently sat down with defense attorneys for the four, looked at the evidence for the case and reached a deal. Byrd said that most of the evidence in the case — interviews with the four defendants — could not be used in a jury trial by law.

According to police reports, Benavidez was in the process of breaking up with her boyfriend and planned to stage a burglary of her own home in attempt to acquire some of her boyfriend’s possessions.

Benavidez was assisted in the robbery by Jimenez, Hoody, and Chavez.

While the staged burglary was taking place, Benavidez’s daughter drove up to the house in a vehicle with two passengers — unaware of the staged burglary in progress — to get items from the house and was shot at by a member of the burglary crew. No one was injured, although the bullet came very close to Benavidez’s daughter.

Byrd said that Jimenez is likely to receive a 3 year prison term due to a past criminal history,  and Benavidez and Chavez will receive terms of a year or less. Hoody will be released for time served. Had the four been convicted for the original charges they would have likely faced life on prison.

Attempts to reach attorneys for the four were unsuccessful.

A sentencing hearing for the Benavidez, Jimenez, Hoody, and Chavez is scheduled for September 27.

Contact the writer:
(760) 256-4126 or adome@desertdispatch.com