LONG BEACH, CA – A Long Beach man was sentenced today to seven years in federal prison for his role in robbing more than $2.6 million in merchandise from a Beverly Hills Jewelry Store in 2022.
Ladell Tharpe, 39, and several other accomplices robbed the Luxury Jewels of Beverly Hills store in March 2022, according to prosecutors.
The 39-year-old, along with Long Beach residents Deshon Bell, 22, Jimmy Lee Vernon III, 33, and an unnamed minor, used sledgehammers and crowbars to break into the jewelry cases at the store.
“Brazen criminal action that directly targets our small businesses in Los Angeles County will not be tolerated,” said Acting United States Attorney Joseph McNally. “The consequences for such action are severe and penalized accordingly, and I want to thank our law enforcement partners for their exceptional and dutiful work during this investigation.”
Prosecutors say the robbery crew took off with at least 19 bracelets, seven pairs of earrings, four necklaces, a pair of obelisks, eight rings, and 20 watches that were valued at just over $2.67 million.
Tharpe posted a photo two days after the crime, flaunting large amounts of cash with the caption “robbery gang,” according to prosecutors. Authorities were further able to tie the men to the crime after finding Vernon’s cellphone at the store, which fell out of his pocket during the robbery, prosecutors said.
Tharpe, who has been in federal custody since March 2023, according to prosecutors, pleaded guilty last September to one count of interference with commerce by robbery.
Vernon has since been sentenced to just under seven years in federal prison after pleading guilty to one count of Hobbs Act robbery. Bell, who served as the getaway driver, also pleaded guilty to one count of Hobbs Act robbery but received a lesser sentence of one year and one day in federal prison.
Tharpe, Vernon and Bell have each been ordered by a federal judge to pay $2,674,000 in restitution.
Article provided by Fernando Haro of Patch News.