Chase Aaron Henderson
One of the men accused of robbing the COD Casino in Minden admitted Tuesday to a felony for striking another jail inmate.
Chase Aaron Henderson, 34, admitted to punching Jessie James Avalos on New Year’s Eve. The charge carries up to six years in prison.
A charge of drug possession in the jail will be dismissed as part of a plea agreement.
Prosecutor Chelsea Mazza said the admission had no effect on the multiple charges stemming from the July 14, 2023, robbery.
Those charges are the subject of a Sept. 18-27 trial for Henderson and co-defendant Andrew Scott Toomey.
Sentencing was set after the scheduled trial on Oct. 1.
Henderson is in custody on more than $3 million bail facing charges of attempted murder assault on police with a deadly weapon, multiple kidnapping charges, in addition to a federal parole hold.
Toomey is being held in lieu of $1.67 million.
The pair is accused of entering the casino, located on Esmeralda Avenue in Minden, around 4 a.m. and locking up the patrons and employees before leaving with around $40,000 and getting into a blue and white PT Cruiser.
A few minutes after the robbery, a Douglas County deputy spotted the car and as he approached, one of the occupants, believed to be Henderson shot at him hitting the vehicle three times, according to testimony at their December preliminary hearing. Both men allegedly fled from the vehicle and were arrested after being found hiding along County Road.
Toomey was on parole when the robbery occurred. Henderson was on federal parole for armed robbery. He’d been out of prison for four months when the robbery occurred.
Henderson is being represented by attorney Matthew Ence.
