Othello man charged in Warden robbery

WARDEN — A second suspect in a late March armed robbery in Warden is now facing charges in Grant County Superior Court.

Grant County prosecutors charged Diego A. Cano, 42, Othello, with first-degree robbery and unlawful imprisonment.

In the early morning hours of March 25, the Warden Police Department learned of a robbery in the city in the 900 block of South Washington Avenue. The victim told police about 12:30 a.m. he went out to make sure his vehicle was locked and was approached by two males, one known to him as “Beaver,” believed to be Victor M. Delasancha Diaz, 29, of Warden, and “Tony,” believed to be Antonio Jacobo Campos, 32, of Othello, according to court documents.

Prosecutors previously charged Delasancha Diaz with first-degree unlawful possession of a firearm and possession of methamphetamine. Delasancha Diaz and Campos allegedly forced the victim into Delasancha Diaz’ camper and wouldn't let him leave.

“(The victim) informed me that he knew better than to just try to walk out because he has had previous encounters with the men and (they) were very violent towards him and his roommates in ways that they would make threats to him telling him that they would stab him or beat him if he didn’t do what he was told,” wrote a WPD officer.

Delasancha Diaza allegedly grabbed a grocery bag filled with drugs “the size of a baseball” and forced the victim to snort an unidentified drug. Cano entered the camper a couple of hours later and reportedly struck the victim twice in the face with a closed fist. The victim was also allegedly assaulted by Delasancha Diaz in the camper.

Cano reportedly traded shoes with the victim and stole the man’s sweater, car keys, wallet and cellphone. Cano reportedly grabbed a knife and held it to the victim’s stomach, threatening him to not go to the police. The victim says before Cano left the camper he forced the victim to consume more drugs “because he did not want him to faint.”

The WPD was contacted by the victim a few hours later and authorities were able to obtain a search warrant for Delasancha Diaz’ camper. The warrant was served on March 27 and Delasancha Diaz was taken into custody at the scene. Detectives with Grant County’s Interagency Narcotics Enforcement Team found 26 grams of meth in the camper, as well as a .38 caliber revolver.

Campos is yet to be caught and considered to be armed and dangerous.

Richard Byrd can be reached via email at city@columbiabasinherald.com.