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Contra Costa County prosecutors on Tuesday confirmed charges were brought against an 18-year-old Antioch man and two juveniles in connection with armed robberies of Rolex watches from victims in Danville and Walnut Creek this summer.
Leon Cathay Fountain pleaded not guilty to three felony counts and four enhancements, including a gang enhancement, for armed robbery following his arraignment on July 7, according to the Contra Costa County District Attorney’s Office.
Two minors, whose names were not released, have been charged with second-degree armed robbery, according to county prosecutors. The status of the juvenile cases is unclear.
The three teenagers were arrested at a home in Antioch about two hours after a brazen daytime armed robbery in the Trader Joe’s parking lot on Railroad Avenue in Danville just after 4:30 p.m. on July 1. The arrestees were also connected to an armed robbery in Walnut Creek on June 24, according to the DA’s office.
Prosecutors allege Fountain and one of the minors used an illegal AR-style assault rifle and other guns in both incidents to steal Rolex watches. They say the Danville crime was carried out at the direction of the Klap street gang, which also allegedly told Fountain where to sell the watches — which had an estimated value of between $30,000 and $40,000.
“In both robberies, the perpetrators followed their victims in vehicles. When the victim reached a location and exited their vehicle, Fountain and one of the minors would surround them at gunpoint and demand they hand over their watches,” prosecutors said.
The Danville robbery involved a Black Acura with a distinctive marking that witnesses were able to describe for investigators. County sheriff’s deputies located the suspect vehicle in Antioch in the early evening of July 1 and with the help of city police arrested the three suspects.
Fountain remains in custody in the Martinez Detention Facility while the minors are booked into county juvenile hall.
Anyone who wears an ostentatious $30-40K Rolex is asking for trouble these days.
Is it worth risking one’s life just to look cool and/or successful?
Owning Rolexes and BMWs is so out of style among the true cognoscenti. They are strictly for the nouveau-riche who feel a dire need to flaunt their new and/or inherited wealth.
Sad.
Yeah, but you would rather blame the victim instead of the suspect.
Probably not a good idea to wear a $30-40K watch with all the Rolex robberies, but you can wear/buy what you want. As far as flaunting your wealth, you could say the same regarding living in an affluent suburb when you could live in Pittsburg or Antioch for a lot less money. Or driving a nice car instead of a cheap one. Or wearing nice clothes instead of a ten dollar t-shirt. Where do you draw the line?
These criminals do not target victims driving Hondas and wearing inexpensive watches.
Advertising high-end consumer goods in public is asking for trouble nowadays.
Is it worth it?
Don’t blame the victim – he has a right to wear what he wants to wear The offenders will strike and attack anyone who looks vulnerable. They came from out of town with the intention to rob, thinking that it was a easy place to commit crimes.
It’s not only robbers who notice men wearing Rolexes.
Rolexes are ‘babe magnets’ that signify personal wealth and professional success…most notably the chronographs and 18k gold models.
I wear mine everyday regardless of where I venture.
It is insured and if someone wants to steal it, no big deal.
Hey Bill Taylor!
Just wondering if you go around letting the air out of the tires on SUV’s in your spare time!
Rolexes & BMWs were cool in the 1970s when they were primarily advertised in National Geographic.
Today they are anachronistic symbols of yuppie-dumb & only fake people desire ownership of such items.
Robbery is robbery regardless of who is doing the robbing and it is irregardless whether the victim is a plastic materialistic person flaunting their presumed status symbol items.
“Thou shall not steal” is a good commandment to live by.
Unfortunately, thievery knows no class or ethnic boundaries.
Loren Bloch sayeth:
“These criminals do not target victims driving Hondas and wearing inexpensive watches.”
The hell they don’t. The following is from 2020 statistics:
1 Ford full-size pickup 44,014
2 Chevrolet full-size pickup 40,968
3 Honda Civic 34,144
4 Honda Accord 30,814
5 Toyota Camry 16,915
6 Nissan Altima 14,668
7 GMC full-size pickup 13,016
8 Toyota Corolla 12,515
9 Honda CR-V 12,309
10 Dodge full-size pickup 11,999
2022 Data shows the Toyota Camry is the most targeted vehicle, followed by the Jeep Grand Cherokee, the Nissan Altima, the Chevy Malibu and the Honda CRV. And while downtown carjackings may get more attention, the data shows most carjackings occur on one side of town.
Don’t believe me? Look it up yourself.
From Tristen Carol, he sayeth:
“Today they are anachronistic symbols of yuppie-dumb & only fake people desire ownership of such items.”
Once again, it’s lets blame the victims instead of the accused. But guess what Tristen, Leon Cathay Fountain was charged with three felony counts and four enhancements, including a gang enhancement, for armed robbery.
At 18 years old, that little gansta is is about to get the biggest wake up call of his life.
Some of these crimes are reflective of one another.
Did the robbery victims actually earn these expensive watches via hard worth and personal integrity or are they also crooks by the nature of their chosen professions (i.e lawyers, real estate developers, professional fiduciaries etc.)?
What comes around goes around.
Dontrelle made the following comment:
“Did the robbery victims actually earn these expensive watches via hard worth and personal integrity…?
What business is it of yours, Dontrelle? Maybe you should question the motives of these little thugs. Let’s see, the adult sitting behind bars is a gang member, and has a criminal history.
Maybe you should ask thug life life about personal integrity.