Robbery while on probation leads to 10 years in prison

Rogelio Cabebe III pleaded no contest to a reduced charge of second-degree robbery in the case

WAILUKU -- A man who was on probation when he robbed another man of his car was sentenced to a 10-year prison term.

Rogelio Cabebe III, 22, had pleaded no contest to a reduced charge of second-degree robbery, with other charges dismissed in exchange for his plea.

"I take full responsibility for my actions," Cabebe said in court Oct. 9. "I apologize to the community and the victim. I was high on methamphetamine at the time, but that's no excuse for my actions."

The robbery occurred the evening of April 3, 2019, as the victim was sitting in his Acura in the rear parking lot of Taco  Bell in Kahului. "He was there with friends, hanging out, showing off their vehicles," said Deputy Prosecutor Shelly Miyashiro.

She said Cabebe showed up with another man in a car and approached the victim, who knew Cabebe from high school. Cabebe started a conversation with the victim, asking to see his vaping device.

"Then he asked the victim, 'What else you got? You got any money?' " Miyashiro said.

She said Cabebe had brass knuckles clenched in his right fist as he told the victim to hand over his cash and car.

When the victim said no, Cabebe became angry and said his friend would come over and do something to the victim, Miyashiro said. She said the man with Cabebe punched the victim in the side of his face before Cabebe took the victim's keys, got into the driver's seat of the victim's car and drove off.

Later that night, a man was seen climbing out the driver's window of the Acura after it crashed into a guardrail on Baldwin Avenue in Makawao.

At the time, Cabebe had been struggling to keep appointments and comply with other requirements of his felony probation, which had already been revoked once in a 2016 case, Miyashiro said.

"Instead of taking advantage of the opportunity, the defendant went back to criminal behavior that escalated and involved threats and violence toward someone he knew from high school," Miyashiro said.

Defense attorney Chris Dunn said Cabebe, who has spent the past year in jail, was 18 and had taken jewelry from a vehicle in the earlier case.

Second Circuit Judge Richard Bissen said it was mature of Cabebe to accept the consequences of his actions.

"It's a heavy price to pay for someone so young," Bissen said. "What's also interesting is at your age, you've already accumulated an adult record that now contains more aggravated conduct, which is violence toward people."

When his probation for first-degree unauthorized entry into a motor vehicle and second-degree theft was revoked in his earlier case, "that should have been a wake-up call for you," Bissen told Cabebe.

"That wasn't enough and you went out and committed a similar crime," the judge said.

He said Cabebe's behavior in prison would determine how much of the prison term he serves before being eligible for parole.

He was resentenced to five-year prison terms in his 2016 case and a one-year jail term for third-degree theft in a 2018 case and will serve all sentences at the same time.

* Lila Fujimoto can be reached at lfujimoto@mauinews.com.