KINGMAN, Ariz. – A local judge has again criticized the leniency of a plea agreement proposed for a modern-day train bandit. Judge Billy Sipe’s comments came during an Aug. 27 sentencing hearing, which was continued until Sept. 9.
Angel Ochoa has pleaded guilty to burglary for a theft event reported June 25 by Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railway police. Ochoa’s box truck was located broken down off the railroad tracks where high-end tennis shoes had been offloaded from a cargo container near the community of Yucca.
More expensive shoes were located in another box truck Ochoa occupied that was stopped hours later on Highway 95 in La Paz County.
While Sipe initially accepted and entered the plea deal, he told attorneys he’ll likely reject its sentencing limitations. He said someone caught stealing about a half-million dollars in shoes deserves something more than supervised probation.
“It’s hard for me to understand how the state would view this case no different than if someone broke into a storage shed and stole some household items,” Sipe said.
Sipe said he has issued search warrants for authorities investigating a series of incidents where crews raided cargo containers, stealing valuable merchandise from BNSF trains in the region for the past three years. Sipe said the merchandise is sometimes sold in the Los Angeles area.
“This is a case I think your office should take more seriously,” Sipe said to deputy county attorney James Gilmore, noting Ochoa is a member of a sophisticated crime ring. “It’s a transnational criminal organization, burglarizing shipping containers along the railways for several years.”
Ochoa will be allowed to withdraw from the deal if Judge Sipe attempts to order incarceration at next month’s sentencing hearing. Attorneys also have time and opportunity to restructure terms of the plea if they wish.
