A Long Beach man was sentenced Monday to 13 months in federal prison for participating in a multi-million dollar smash-and-grab robbery in Beverly Hills .
Deshon Bell, 21, and his co-defendants carried out “one of the most bold and unabashed smash and grab robberies” federal prosecutors said they’d ever seen.
The crime “ traumatized many victims and also inspired many more crimes as the widespread news coverage seemed not to deter, but embolden and encourage smash and grab robbers,” federal prosecutors said in a sentencing memo.
Bell was initially facing a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison after being charged in October 2022 with conspiracy and interference with commerce by robbery, but after prosecutors said they learned he likely wasn’t involved in planning the robbery, Bell was allowed to plead to the lesser charge of one count of interference with commerce by robbery.
Federal prosecutors said Bell, along with several co-conspirators, drove three vehicles from Long Beach to Luxury Jewels of Beverly Hills where they wielded axes, sledgehammers and crowbars to smash open cases and grab merchandise before fleeing through an alley.