Ephrata man gets over 12 years for armed robbery

EPHRATA — An Ephrata man will be spending over 12 years behind prison bars for robbing a man at gunpoint in Ephrata over the summer.

Alfredo Silva, 25, of Ephrata, pleaded guilty in Grant County Superior Court to first-degree robbery, two counts of second-degree assault (deadly weapon) and first-degree unlawful possession of a firearm. Per a joint recommendation between the prosecution and defense, Silva was sentenced to a total of 150 months, 12.5 years, in prison.

The sentence dates back to an Aug. 13 incident when Silva robbed a man at gunpoint at an apartment complex in the 1400 block of Basin Street Southwest in Ephrata. Court documents indicate two Hispanic males arrived at the complex and knocked on the door of an apartment.

The two males left the complex, but Silva returned a short time later and pointed a gun at two males who were on the porch of an apartment. Silva demanded money from the males, pointed a gun at one of the victims’ forehead and demanded his belongings. He then fired a shot into a nearby couch and aimed the gun at the victim a second time. The victim then turned over his wallet to Silva.

Silva fled the area and was picked up by his sister in the Safeway parking lot. A search warrant at the sister’s apartment turned up a credit card and social security card, both of which belonged to the robbery victim. The sister was charged with rendering criminal assistance, but the charge was ultimately dismissed.

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