Two Men Sentenced For Series of Armed Robberies

Two men have been convicted as for several armed robberies that occurred throughout Alameda and Santa Clara counties in late 2010, authorities announced Wednesday.

According to Fremont police, Bryan Brownwhite, 25, of Concord, and Paul Espino, 26, of Hayward, have been sentenced to prison for taking part in a series of 10 robberies of convenience stores in Fremont, Milpitas, San Jose, Santa Clara, Hayward and Oakland.

In each robbery, a suspect would enter the store, demand cash by pointing a handgun at the store’s clerk and fleeing, according to a press release. All robberies took place during the week of Sept. 4, 2010 between 4:10 a.m. and 5:50 a.m., Fremont police said.

Authorities said through a joint investigation by police department robbery units in Fremont, Oakland, San Jose and Milpitas, officers were able to determine that Brownwhite was the armed suspect, while Espino acted as the get-away driver in the series of robberies.

The pair was arrested on Sept. 16. Both entered pleas on Oct. 1.

Espino pleaded no contest and was sentenced to one year in prison in connection to the robbery series and two years in prison for a separate series of robberies that occurred in San Mateo County.

Brownwhite pleaded guilty and has been sentenced to five years in prison for the Alameda County robberies. He was also sentenced to six years in prison for the robberies in Santa Clara County.