GRETNA, LA — The Jefferson Parish District Attorney’s Office says a man pleaded guilty to charges in a robbery case involving a victim who the suspect met on a dating app.
27-year-old Randell Mason of Marrero was sentenced to 15 years in prison. The robbery happened in March of 2016.
Prosecutors say the two men met days before the crime through a dating application and exchanged phone numbers and text messages before agreeing to meet in person.
They say the two drove to a location that the victim thought was the home of Mason’s aunt. As they walked through an alley, prosecutors say Mason pulled a gun on the other man and demanded his car keys. The victim handed them over, and Mason drove away from the scene.
Within hours, detectives used Mason’s photo from the dating app to identify him as the suspect. He was arrested in April of the same year.
Jury selection in the trial began this morning. But before any testimony was given, Mason pleaded guilty to the robbery charge as well as a charge of being a convicted felon in possession of a firearm, which he also received a 15 year sentence.
