During a brazen Valentine’s Day heist of an armored truck in Hawthorne, the robber kept his face covered.
But as he bent down to stuff bills from a haul of more than $166,000 into bags, his hoodie rode up — exposing a star tattoo on his lower back.
That tattoo became a major point of focus in the trial this month of Deneyvous Hobson, an accused member of a prolific L.A. armored car robbery crew known as the “Chesapeake Bandits.”
Hobson, 38, faced conspiracy, robbery, and weapons charges.
Prosecutors told the jury that the star tattoo, captured in surveillance video during the 2022 robbery, matched one in the same location on Hobson’s lower back.
“The evidence of defendant’s guilt is his tattoo,” Asst. U.S. Atty. Jason C. Pang told jurors at the start of trial last week.
During the trial, both sides presented expert witnesses to talk about the tattoo. Alex Alonso, who has worked as a professor in the Cal State university system and recently taught a class about the history of street gangs, was called by the defense.