More than three years after a spate of armed robberies terrified six residents in Kennett and New Garden Townships, a Chester County jury on Thursday, May 12, determined that one of the alleged defendants had lived up to his nickname: “Criminal.”
After about six hours of deliberations, the panel convicted Emmanuel Renteria, 27, of West Grove, on 10 counts of robbery and related charges. Chester County District Attorney Tom Hogan said teamwork played a pivotal role in the case, and he applauded the work of prosecutor Chad Maloney, Chester County Detectives, and officers in the Pennsylvania State Police and New Garden, Kennett Township, Kennett Square and Wilmington police departments.
"Given the fact that he [Renteria] chose the street name ‘Criminal,’ it was just a matter of time before he earned a trip up-state,” said Hogan, referring to the state prison system.
According to the criminal complaint, Renteria was one of three suspects who committed six armed robberies on Jan. 19, 2013, between 3:10 and 4:05 p.m. within a four-mile radius. In one instance, a man was sitting in his car at Guizzetti’s Mushroom Farm talking on the phone to his girlfriend when a white Ford Taurus passed him.
Within seconds, the Ford turned around and a masked man dressed all in black pointed a gun at the victim and then took his wallet and cellphone. Less than 15 minutes later, two brothers who had just returned from a shopping trip were subjected to the same scenario. They told police the Taurus followed them into their driveway where a man dressed in black demanded wallets and cellphones at gunpoint, the complaint said.
The fourth victim was approached in a parking lot in the 600 block of Rosedale Road in Kennett Township. When he told the gun-wielding suspect that he didn’t have any money, the man uttered expletives and struck the victim in the head with the gun, the complaint said.
The trio then moved to the stop sign at the intersection of McFarland and Rosedale roads in Kennett Township, where one of the men waved the gun at another motorist and his passenger, who pulled into Fragale’s Mushrooms to escape the Taurus, which was now following them. As the victim put his vehicle in reverse, one of the suspects shattered one of his windows with the gun, the complaint said.
Police broadcast the description of the white Taurus, and less than an hour after the first armed robbery, Trooper Aaron Dykes from the Avondale barracks spotted the vehicle heading west on Hillendale Road as did Kennett Square Police Officer Andrew Manko. Both attempted to initiate a traffic stop, but the Taurus fled, initiating a chase that led to Wilmington, where the Taurus was abandoned and Ninth and Market streets, the complaint said.
The suspects fled on foot; however, Wilmington Police were able to track down Saul Alvarez, 27, of Oxford, using a K-9 unit. The Ford Taurus was registered to his mother, who hadn’t given him permission to take it. Police also recovered a sweatshirt that ultimately led to Renteria through DNA testing, investigators said.
Kennett Township Police Chief Lydell Nolt said the investigation remains open since one of the suspects has not yet been identified. He said Alvarez is serving a 17- to 34-year prison term, a combination of the robbery sentence and a parole violation. He said that both Alvarez and Renteria are known to police as members of the Sur 13 gang and that he was pleased that neither would be on the street anytime soon.
“It’s an example that if you’re going to commit a serious crime … the police department will continue to work to bring you to justice, no matter how long it takes,” he said.
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