Vallejo man gets 4 years for Peninsula armed robbery last March

Incident involved over $5,000 worth of goods

SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO >> A Vallejo man was sentenced to four years in state prison Tuesday for driving the getaway car in a Peninsula armed robbery that involved over $5,000 worth of stolen goods and cash, according to the San Mateo County District Attorney’s Office.

One afternoon last March, Eric Hamilton and two other men followed a couple in their 60s home from the Lytton Casino in San Pablo, prosecutors said. As the couple stopped at a Walgreens in the Westborough neighborhood, Hamilton and his accomplices pulled up behind the car and blocked it in.

While Hamilton waited to drive away, one of his companions held a gun to the woman’s head and nabbed her purse, while the other demanded money from her husband.

The trio made off with about $2,400 in cash and the woman’s $2,700 purse, prosecutors said — but not for long. As Hamilton took off, the victims managed to write down his car’s license plate and description, which they relayed to 911 dispatchers.

Within a few minutes, Daly City police pulled over the car on northbound Interstate 280 and arrested all three men. Officers recovered the stolen items and later found more cash stuffed in one accomplice’s underwear.

In January, Hamilton was found guilty of several counts of felony robbery and arming enhancements. San Mateo County Superior Court Judge Clifford Cretan denied probation this week and sentenced him to four years in prison with credit for 313 days served, plus restitution and fines.