10/02/2007
PA men get 40 years each for string of crimes
By RYAN MYERS , The Enterprise

Two men who crashed into and killed a Nederland teen while fleeing police after a string of robberies last year pleaded guilty Monday to their respective roles in the crimes.


With a jury panel waiting outside the courtroom and prosecutors Ed Shettle and Ashley Chase preparing to try both cases, Cuevas and Fuentes entered the 11th-hour plea agreements.

Each will serve at least 20 years in prison before they are eligible for parole.

Humberto Cuevas Jr., 21, and Romualdo Fuentes, 22, both of Port Arthur, robbed patrons at three Mid-County convenience stores on April 8, 2006, before attempting to outrun Jefferson County deputies responding to reports of the crimes, according to prosecutors and court documents.

Deputies slowed their pursuit as the chase approached a group of motorcyclists near Twin City Highway (Texas 347) and Nederland Avenue, Sheriff Mitch Woods told The Enterprise in April 2006.

But the green 1993 Honda driven by Cuevas ran a red light at the intersection, striking a 2004 Scion driven by 18-year-old Nederland High School graduate Bryan Oliver Turner. Turner died at the scene.

Both men were charged with three counts of aggravated robbery and one count of felony murder.

Cuevas, through an interpreter, pleaded guilty to the felony murder charge and was sentenced to 40 years in prison by 252nd state District Judge Layne Walker. The aggravated robbery charges against him were dismissed.

Fuentes, who pleaded guilty to the three robbery charges, also was sentenced to 40 years. Prosecutors dismissed the felony murder charge against him.

A tall, thin man, Fuentes had a dramatic scar across the top of his skull and walked with a pronounced limp. Court documents indicate Fuentes was severely injured and suffered brain damage in the wreck that killed Turner. A psychologist found him competent to stand trial.

County jail records indicate Immigrations and Customs Enforcement has requested a hold on both men, reflecting questions about their immigration status, prosecutors said.

Neither man has a significant criminal history.

The first robbery that night was in the parking lot of the E-Z Market in the 100 block of U.S. 69 at about 10:30 p.m. Cuevas then drove the pair to Leo's Food Mart at U.S. 69 and Spurlock Road where Fuentes again robbed a person in the parking lot, according to court documents.

The final robbery before deputies gave chase was at the Crossroads convenience store in the 2500 block of Twin City Highway at Spurlock Road, where prosecutors said Fuentes stabbed someone in the parking lot with the box cutter.

In fleeing the police, Cuevas sped north on southbound Twin City Highway before tearing through Sheffield trailer park and across residential yards, finally returning to Twin City Highway. The chase lasted less than five minutes.

www.southeasttexaslive.com