Jury tampering latest charge facing man on trial

Prosecutors allege the defendant went to jurors’ homes to talk about the case

REDWOOD CITY >> In a situation rarely seen in San Mateo County, prosecutors on Friday charged a San Francisco man on trial for armed robbery with jury tampering, alleging the defendant went to the homes of a current and former juror to “find out what they were thinking” about his case.

Rommel Narvaez, 24, was formally charged Friday with two counts of jury tampering, one count of disobeying a court order and one count of prowling, according to the San Mateo County District Attorney’s Office.

San Mateo County District Attorney Steve Wagstaffe said he has seen only a handful of jury tampering cases during his 40 years as a prosecutor.

“It’s totally frightening when a defendant who is accused of armed robbery, and the jury heard four days of evidence, to have him show up at” at their homes, Wagstaffe said.

On June 5, four days into his trial on charges of armed robbery, Narvaez allegedly went to the homes of one juror who had been excused and one alternate juror still involved in the case, Wagstaffe said.

The teen daughter of one of the jurors reportedly found Narvaez peeking through the window of her home. Narvaez allegedly left a note at the home of the other juror, asking to talk about the case and get the juror’s reaction.

Narvaez used the internet to locate the jurors in Redwood City and unincorporated Burlingame, Wagstaffe said.

A mistrial was declared in the armed robbery case, which now has to start fresh, Wagstaffe said.

Narvaez is next scheduled to appear in court Wednesday for the jury tampering case and Thursday for the armed robbery case. If convicted as charged in the armed robbery case, Narvaez could be facing a sentence of 25 years in prison, Wagstaffe said.

The armed robbery case dates back to April 2013, when Narvaez allegedly lured two victims to locations in Daly City by posting or responding to Craigslist ads offering cash in exchange for iPhones. In both cases, prosecutors allege Narvaez pulled out a gun and robbed the victims of cash.

In October 2013, Narvaez was shot multiple times by San Francisco police after he reportedly brandished a handgun at officers following a botched robbery attempt, according to ABC7, this newspaper’s media partner. In that case, Narvaez tried to rob two women who believed they were meeting him to sell used iPhones.

One of the women called police, and officers found Narvaez hiding in bushes. When he allegedly refused to come out and brandished a handgun, he was shot several times.