A 53-year-old man was sentenced today to 95 years to life in state prison for kidnapping and robbing a 79-year-old woman, and burglarizing the home of another elderly woman, the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office announced.

On May 4, a jury found Alonzo Bernard Johnson guilty of three felony counts in case GA087078: first degree residential robbery, kidnapping to commit robbery and first-degree burglary, person present.

Jurors also found true a special allegation that the defendant personally used a deadly and dangerous weapon, a knife, during the commission of the crime. Additionally, jurors found true that Johnson inflicted great bodily injury on an elderly victim.

Deputy District Attorney Presciliano Duran, who prosecuted the case, said on Aug. 6, 2012, Johnson entered a South Pasadena home and accosted the 79-year-old homeowner in her kitchen where he broke her nose.

Johnson demanded money from the victim in her kitchen and then pulled her to the bedroom while using a knife, where he forced her to lay face down on her bed and attempted to tie her up with an electrical cord.

The defendant repeatedly demanded that the victim give him jewelry as he continuously punched her in the head and face while threatening to kill her. The victim suffered a brain bleed and ruptured ear drum from the assault.

As the homeowner struggled with Johnson on her bed, her two grandchildren, ages 8 and 12, entered the house and she told them to get help. At that point, Johnson grabbed the jewelry and fled the home, the prosecutor said.

Soon after the incident, Johnson was located and arrested in connection with the kidnapping and robbery.

During the investigation, authorities linked Johnson through fingerprints and DNA to a Pasadena home burglary on June 22, 2012. In that incident, another 79-year-old woman walked into her bedroom and found the defendant stealing her jewelry before he fled her home.

The case was investigated by the South Pasadena Police Department.

Los Angeles County District Attorney / case GA087078 / August 26, 2016