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Alleged robber shot to death in Flag City had criminal history
By Ross Farrow/News-Sentinel Staff Writer
FLAG CITY -- The Stockton man who was shot to death when he allegedly tried to rob a truck driver Wednesday night had been out of jail only since Dec. 17.
Ira Joe Braggs, 52, had an extensive criminal history that included armed robbery and burglary, San Joaquin County Sheriff's Department spokeswoman Nellie Stone said.
Braggs spent about four years off and on in state prison since Sept. 27, 1996, according to records from the California Department of Corrections.
Braggs was shot to death late Wednesday night after climbing into the cab of a truck, beating up the truck driver with the butt of a gun and trying to rob him, Stone said.
The truck driver, Byne Delorto, 44, grabbed his own gun and shot Braggs once in the chest, Stone said. Braggs died a short time later at San Joaquin General Hospital in French Camp.
The Sheriff's Department ruled that Delorto shot Braggs in self-defense and released him after questioning, Stone said. Delorto lives in the town of Mt. Shasta in Siskiyou County, not in nearby Weed, as previously reported by the Sheriff's Department. He was also incorrectly identified as "Delorio" by San Joaquin County authorities.
A man with Braggs at the time of the shooting, David Adam Banks, 38, ran away from the truck stop. Banks was arrested at about 8 a.m. Thursday at White Slough wastewater treatment plant, about two miles from the truck stop, Stone said.
Banks, a Stockton resident, is scheduled to be arraigned at 1:30 p.m. Monday in Stockton on charges of murder, attempted robbery and parole violation, according to jail records. He is in custody at county jail in French Camp on no bail.
Braggs had served county jail and state prison time off and on since 1990 on robbery, burglary, battery and drug charges, Stone said.
In 1990, Braggs was sentenced to six months in county jail after being convicted of armed robbery in Tracy, Stone said. Braggs has also been convicted in Stanislaus County, Fairfield, Merced and Los Banos, she said. He committed crimes in Stockton and Manteca, as well as Tracy, Stone said.
Braggs was sent to state prison for the first time in 1996 after being convicted of petty theft with priors in Stanislaus County, prison records show. He was paroled about two years early -- on Nov. 6, 1999 -- but he returned to prison on parole violations five times since, records show.
Information wasn't available from either the Sheriff's Department or the Department of Corrections on what offenses Braggs committed since his 1996 conviction because it is easier to return them to prison for a parole violation than for the actual offense, said Department of Corrections spokesman Russ Heimerich.
His most recent incarceration was on Oct. 18, and he was released two months later, records show.
Banks, who was arrested in connection with the shooting, has been in state prison a little more than five years off and on since 1995, records show. His first arrest conviction resulting in state prison time was for possessing a controlled substance. He was admitted to state prison on April 21, 1995 and paroled on Sept. 14, 1997.
Most recently, Banks was imprisoned on a parole violation on Dec. 31 and released on Jan. 7, records show.
Information was not available from the Department of Corrections on whether Banks and Braggs had been incarcerated at the same prison.
Lodi-area truckers say it's pretty unusual for truck drivers to be beaten and robbed, at least in San Joaquin County.
"I don't see it as a trend," said Lodi resident Don Lindsay, safety director for Jim Aartman Inc., a Ripon trucking company.
Commenting on Wednesday's shooting in Flag City, Lindsay said, "I don't know why they picked a truck driver because they're pretty large people. I'd pick somebody smaller."
Lindsay said he was a truck driver for 12 years, but he's heard of only one other incident, that one being in Texas.
Todd Teresi of Lodi-based Teresi Trucking said the most recent issue of Truckers News, a trade publication, focuses on truck hijacking. The article notes hijacking incidents in Florida and Ohio.
In California, people steal cargo more than they rob drivers, Teresi said. The most popular targets are trucks carrying stereos, televisions, VCRs and other items, he said. Also popular are clothing and shoes, which Teresi said are more popular because they are easy to sell at flea markets, and they don't have serial numbers.
Truckers have more problems with criminals in the Bay Area than in the Central Valley, Teresi said.
http://www.lodinews.com/display/inn_news/01_shooting_030308.txt
By Ross Farrow/News-Sentinel Staff Writer
FLAG CITY -- The Stockton man who was shot to death when he allegedly tried to rob a truck driver Wednesday night had been out of jail only since Dec. 17.
Ira Joe Braggs, 52, had an extensive criminal history that included armed robbery and burglary, San Joaquin County Sheriff's Department spokeswoman Nellie Stone said.
Braggs spent about four years off and on in state prison since Sept. 27, 1996, according to records from the California Department of Corrections.
Braggs was shot to death late Wednesday night after climbing into the cab of a truck, beating up the truck driver with the butt of a gun and trying to rob him, Stone said.
The truck driver, Byne Delorto, 44, grabbed his own gun and shot Braggs once in the chest, Stone said. Braggs died a short time later at San Joaquin General Hospital in French Camp.
The Sheriff's Department ruled that Delorto shot Braggs in self-defense and released him after questioning, Stone said. Delorto lives in the town of Mt. Shasta in Siskiyou County, not in nearby Weed, as previously reported by the Sheriff's Department. He was also incorrectly identified as "Delorio" by San Joaquin County authorities.
A man with Braggs at the time of the shooting, David Adam Banks, 38, ran away from the truck stop. Banks was arrested at about 8 a.m. Thursday at White Slough wastewater treatment plant, about two miles from the truck stop, Stone said.
Banks, a Stockton resident, is scheduled to be arraigned at 1:30 p.m. Monday in Stockton on charges of murder, attempted robbery and parole violation, according to jail records. He is in custody at county jail in French Camp on no bail.
Braggs had served county jail and state prison time off and on since 1990 on robbery, burglary, battery and drug charges, Stone said.
In 1990, Braggs was sentenced to six months in county jail after being convicted of armed robbery in Tracy, Stone said. Braggs has also been convicted in Stanislaus County, Fairfield, Merced and Los Banos, she said. He committed crimes in Stockton and Manteca, as well as Tracy, Stone said.
Braggs was sent to state prison for the first time in 1996 after being convicted of petty theft with priors in Stanislaus County, prison records show. He was paroled about two years early -- on Nov. 6, 1999 -- but he returned to prison on parole violations five times since, records show.
Information wasn't available from either the Sheriff's Department or the Department of Corrections on what offenses Braggs committed since his 1996 conviction because it is easier to return them to prison for a parole violation than for the actual offense, said Department of Corrections spokesman Russ Heimerich.
His most recent incarceration was on Oct. 18, and he was released two months later, records show.
Banks, who was arrested in connection with the shooting, has been in state prison a little more than five years off and on since 1995, records show. His first arrest conviction resulting in state prison time was for possessing a controlled substance. He was admitted to state prison on April 21, 1995 and paroled on Sept. 14, 1997.
Most recently, Banks was imprisoned on a parole violation on Dec. 31 and released on Jan. 7, records show.
Information was not available from the Department of Corrections on whether Banks and Braggs had been incarcerated at the same prison.
Lodi-area truckers say it's pretty unusual for truck drivers to be beaten and robbed, at least in San Joaquin County.
"I don't see it as a trend," said Lodi resident Don Lindsay, safety director for Jim Aartman Inc., a Ripon trucking company.
Commenting on Wednesday's shooting in Flag City, Lindsay said, "I don't know why they picked a truck driver because they're pretty large people. I'd pick somebody smaller."
Lindsay said he was a truck driver for 12 years, but he's heard of only one other incident, that one being in Texas.
Todd Teresi of Lodi-based Teresi Trucking said the most recent issue of Truckers News, a trade publication, focuses on truck hijacking. The article notes hijacking incidents in Florida and Ohio.
In California, people steal cargo more than they rob drivers, Teresi said. The most popular targets are trucks carrying stereos, televisions, VCRs and other items, he said. Also popular are clothing and shoes, which Teresi said are more popular because they are easy to sell at flea markets, and they don't have serial numbers.
Truckers have more problems with criminals in the Bay Area than in the Central Valley, Teresi said.
http://www.lodinews.com/display/inn_news/01_shooting_030308.txt
