MONROE - A Beloit man involved in a drug-related robbery last April in downtown Monroe that ended in the arrest of another man and the death of a third was sentenced to three years in prison and four years of extended supervision Tuesday, April 17, in Green County Circuit Court.
Luis Enrique Western, 36, will serve only about two years of the prison sentence since he accumulated 379 days of sentence credit sitting in jail in the past year.
According to the case against Western, as presented by District Attorney Gary Luhman:
Western, who has a history of dealing and abusing drugs, rode along with two other Beloit men to Monroe to collect a drug debt for a dealer named "Primo" from the owner of the El Borrego grocery store in the 1000 block of 16th Avenue on April 5, 2011. Western was an informant for a Rock County drug agent at the time, but the trip was not at the agent's request.
While the other two men, Luis Cruz and Jonathan Guadarrama, forced the store owner to cash a check at a nearby bank, Western kept watch at the grocery. A suspicious bank teller alerted police to the hold-up. Employees were able to slip out of the bank building without harm and Western was arrested about an hour later on Wisconsin 11.
Guadarrama, who was waiting in a minivan outside the bank, died a short time later after leading police on a high-speed chase down Wisconsin 11/81. He lost control of the vehicle and rolled it; the fatal accident occurred east of Juda.
Western pleaded no contest and was convicted in February of a Class G felony theft. Felony charges of battery and false imprisonment were dismissed but read into the sentencing.
Cruz has pleaded no contest to charges of battery and theft. His sentencing is scheduled for May 2.
Western's defense attorney, Frank Medina, argued that the trip to Monroe could reasonably be considered part of his work as an informant. Sometimes informants work "spontaneous," he said, "especially when you have someone like Primo telling you what to do.
"He did not directly injure anyone. He did not take any monies from anyone," Medina continued. But the attorney conceded that four years of extended supervision is a "super good idea" because Western needs the structure in his life.
Western declined to speak when Judge Thomas Vale gave him the opportunity. About five friends or family members, including a toddler, sat in the courtroom during his sentencing.
Vale admonished Western's participation in a robbery that put downtown Monroe on lockdown and disturbed the "peace and security in a quiet town." He said he hoped Western's sentence would send a message that "this behavior will not be tolerated."
"This is not the Wild West in Green County," said Vale. "You're way too old to be engaged in this behavior."
Luis Enrique Western, 36, will serve only about two years of the prison sentence since he accumulated 379 days of sentence credit sitting in jail in the past year.
According to the case against Western, as presented by District Attorney Gary Luhman:
Western, who has a history of dealing and abusing drugs, rode along with two other Beloit men to Monroe to collect a drug debt for a dealer named "Primo" from the owner of the El Borrego grocery store in the 1000 block of 16th Avenue on April 5, 2011. Western was an informant for a Rock County drug agent at the time, but the trip was not at the agent's request.
While the other two men, Luis Cruz and Jonathan Guadarrama, forced the store owner to cash a check at a nearby bank, Western kept watch at the grocery. A suspicious bank teller alerted police to the hold-up. Employees were able to slip out of the bank building without harm and Western was arrested about an hour later on Wisconsin 11.
Guadarrama, who was waiting in a minivan outside the bank, died a short time later after leading police on a high-speed chase down Wisconsin 11/81. He lost control of the vehicle and rolled it; the fatal accident occurred east of Juda.
Western pleaded no contest and was convicted in February of a Class G felony theft. Felony charges of battery and false imprisonment were dismissed but read into the sentencing.
Cruz has pleaded no contest to charges of battery and theft. His sentencing is scheduled for May 2.
Western's defense attorney, Frank Medina, argued that the trip to Monroe could reasonably be considered part of his work as an informant. Sometimes informants work "spontaneous," he said, "especially when you have someone like Primo telling you what to do.
"He did not directly injure anyone. He did not take any monies from anyone," Medina continued. But the attorney conceded that four years of extended supervision is a "super good idea" because Western needs the structure in his life.
Western declined to speak when Judge Thomas Vale gave him the opportunity. About five friends or family members, including a toddler, sat in the courtroom during his sentencing.
Vale admonished Western's participation in a robbery that put downtown Monroe on lockdown and disturbed the "peace and security in a quiet town." He said he hoped Western's sentence would send a message that "this behavior will not be tolerated."
"This is not the Wild West in Green County," said Vale. "You're way too old to be engaged in this behavior."