Ex-Con Sentenced After South El Monte Robberies

Kaelenn Sinaukoko Maea, a 29-year-old Long Beach man, was sentenced on July 8 to 318 months in federal prison for a weeklong armed robbery spree in Los Angeles County that ended in a fatal crash during a police pursuit, federal prosecutors said. The sentence was imposed by U.S. District Judge Michael W. Fitzgerald in Los Angeles, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California. Prosecutors said Maea took part in robberies at a liquor store in Downey, a gas station in Compton and a convenience store in South El Monte in late September 2023. They said the spree ended on October 9, 2023, when Maea crashed a stolen Range Rover into a civilian vehicle, killing one motorist and injuring another, while fleeing law enforcement. ### Which robberies was Maea sentenced for? Federal prosecutors said Maea pleaded guilty in April 2025 to conspiracy to interfere with commerce by robbery, one Hobbs Act robbery count, and one firearms count tied to possessing, using, carrying, brandishing and discharging a short-barreled rifle during a crime of violence. The charges covered three armed robberies committed during a one-week span in late September 2023. (justice.gov) The U.S. Attorney’s Office said the businesses targeted were a Downey liquor store, a Compton gasoline station and a South El Monte convenience store. Prosecutors said the crew stole about $5,050 in cash across the three robberies. ### What did prosecutors say happened inside the stores? (justice.gov) The Justice Department said Maea discharged a short-barreled rifle inside the Downey liquor store. Prosecutors said that in the Compton robbery he brandished the rifle at an employee and stood in the doorway to stop customers and workers from escaping. They said he also brandished the rifle during the South El Monte convenience store robbery. (justice.gov) An August 2025 account from prosecutors in a related co-defendant case said the robbery crew used the rifle to control cashiers and customers while another robber took full cash registers or cash drawers before the group fled in a stolen Range Rover. That filing identified the same three robbery locations — Downey, Compton and South El Monte. (justice.gov) ### How did the robbery spree end in a fatal crash? October 9, 2023, was the date prosecutors said Maea drove the stolen Range Rover used in the latter two robberies and fled from law enforcement at high speed. The U.S. Attorney’s Office said he drove recklessly, crashed into a civilian motorist and killed the victim, then kept going and hit more cars, injuring another civilian motorist. (mynewsla.com) Prosecutors said Maea then ran from the wrecked vehicle and hid underneath a house until officers arrested him. In a related 2025 case, prosecutors said sheriff’s deputies also found evidence tied to him in and around the crash scene, including clothing, identification and a phone believed to belong to him. (justice.gov) ### Who else was charged in the case? Isaiah Villasana, 27, of Carson, is serving a 10-year federal prison sentence after pleading guilty in April 2025 to a firearms charge for holding a victim at gunpoint during the Downey liquor store robbery, prosecutors said. Mathew Salanoa, 32, of Placentia, is serving a 49-month federal prison sentence after pleading guilty in August 2025 to Hobbs Act robbery conspiracy for participating in the Compton robbery. (justice.gov) Salagi Iakopo, 26, of Compton, pleaded guilty in August 2025 to one count of Hobbs Act robbery conspiracy and is scheduled to be sentenced on August 19, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office. Prosecutors said the FBI and the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department investigated the case. (justice.gov) ### What remains unresolved after Maea’s sentencing? Restitution will be determined at a later date, the Justice Department said. The next scheduled milestone in the case is Iakopo’s August 19 sentencing in federal court, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office. (justice.gov)