California men sentenced to prison for string of robberies in Colorado
Two men from California have been sentenced to 30 years in prison for a string of robberies across the Front Range in 2023.
Antonio Deray Darnell, 36, and Gabriel Angel Sanchez, 32, were convicted for five incidents that took place in June and July in which they targeted cash couriers making scheduled pickups at local dispensaries.
This included the robbery of an Empyreal Logistics employee outside of High Plainz Dispensary in Garden City. That courier was carrying a case containing approximately $67,000 when the two men confronted him in the parking lot, then took the cash and fled in a nearby vehicle.
Darnell and Sanchez also targeted other Empyreal Logistics couriers in Denver and in Northern Colorado. In total, authorities say the men stole more than $116,000.
The company's vans are equipped with surveillance cameras. Footage from those cameras and surveillance cameras at the dispensaries helped Denver police detectives and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms agents investigate the case. They discovered the men rented vehicles through the Turo car rental marketplace to commit the robberies, which led authorities to Darnell's account.
All five incidents were charged and prosecuted in Weld County. A jury convicted Darnell and Sanchez in February 2026 on three counts of robbery, four counts of theft and one count of attempted theft.
On May 19, a Weld County judge sentenced both men to 30 years in the Colorado Department of Corrections.
