Man sentenced to prison for role in Las Vegas jewelry store heists

Philbert Cole was sentenced Tuesday to 110 months in federal prison for his role in a series of 2014 jewelry store robberies.

That was years more than what the felon accused of orchestrating the robbery scheme got.

Cole, 26, pleaded guilty to robbery charges and cooperated with prosecutors against the felon, Brian Wright, but it was Wright who walked out of court a free man earlier this year.

Because of prosecution mistakes, Wright avoided trial at the last minute in April and struck a plea deal that earned him a sentence of the 21 months he spent in custody following his arrest in the three armed robberies.

A third defendant, Danielle Perreira, whom prosecutors accused of being the getaway driver, entered a guilty plea that called for a term of five years’ probation. She is awaiting sentencing.

Neither Wright nor Perreira pleaded guilty to any robbery charges, and most of the $1.1 million in jewelry stolen in the robberies is still missing.

After Cole was sentenced Tuesday, his lawyers, Lisa Rasmussen and Kathleen Bliss, were critical of the government for allowing the sentencing disparities.

“I don’t think they’ve been fair in treating my client,” Rassmussen said. “Wright is walking the streets, and he is a danger to the community. This is a very poor example of the government protecting its citizens.”

Rasmussen said she had asked prosecutors to tear up Cole’s original plea agreement in the wake of Wright’s deal and offer a more favorable one, but they refused.

In court, Cole, who has been in federal custody, showed remorse and apologized for his actions.

“I didn’t mean to harm anybody,” he told Senior U.S. District Judge Kent Dawson. “I accept the fact that I have to pay for what I did.”

Cole, who has been diagnosed with bipolar disorder, told Dawson he planned to come out of prison a better man and was confident he would be a productive member of society.

Both his mother, a university professor, and his father, a career military man, pleaded for leniency for their son as they testified about his history of mental problems.

“If there’s something that comes out of this, it’s that finally he understands he suffers from mental illness,” his mother, Donna, said.

His parents and Cole’s lawyers contended that Wright preyed upon Cole’s vulnerabilities to get him to play a prominent role in the robberies.

Prosecutors sought a large reduction in Cole’s sentence because of his cooperation. But because of the nature of the robbery charges, which involved the use of a weapon, they recommended 125 months in prison for Cole.

Dawson cut the sentence further because of Cole’s remorse and mental issues, and he made a point of showing his disdain for Wright.

“Mr. Wright appears to be a narcissist who has no conscience whatsoever, and Mr. Wright will not be long in getting in trouble again,” he said.

Wright’s plea deal came under pressure from U.S. District Judge Andrew Gordon, who criticized prosecutors for failing to turn over key evidence to Wright until the morning of his trial. Cole was prepared to testify for the government but never got a chance.

Prosecutors abandoned the trial and agreed to the deal even though they believed Wright was the ringleader in the robbery scheme. Had Wright gone to trial and been convicted, he could have faced 100 years in prison.

Contact Jeff German at jgerman@reviewjournal.com or 702-380-8135. Follow @JGermanRJ on Twitter.