Man sentenced for Niles robbery
Warren man sentenced to 7 years in prison for Niles robbery
Warren man sentenced to 7 years in prison for Niles robbery
Staff report
WARREN
Joseph Daniel, 22, of Brier Street Southeast, is going to prison for seven years for robbing the Fuel Plus gas station on West Park Avenue in Niles on May 16.
Daniel pleaded guilty Tuesday in Trumbull County Common Pleas Court to three counts of aggravated robbery and single counts of felonious assault, improper handling of firearms in a motor vehicle and tampering with evidence.
In exchange, prosecutors dropped four counts of kidnapping for the four people in the store at the time of the robbery.
Police said Daniel walked into the gas station at 11:34 p.m. wearing a partial ski mask on his face, dark clothes and plastic gloves and held a gun while demanding money from the register and customers.
One thing he didn’t count on was that one of the customers followed Daniel as he walked out of the store and got into the back of a car.
The customer followed the vehicle for a few minutes through nearby streets while talking to a 911 dispacher. Eventually Daniel left his car and walked toward the customer, pointing his gun at him.
The customer said he ducked down in his car and drove away.
By then, a Niles police officer spotted Daniel, who attempted to climb a fence but instead tossed something on the ground and ran in another direction.
With the help of Weathersfield police, officers spotted Daniel leaning against a building on State Street, talking on his phone, and took him into custody.
The item he tossed was the gun he used in the robbery, police said.