Mazza

HOLLIDAYSBURG — The DuBois man who allegedly robbed two stores with his girlfriend was sentenced Thursday to 15 to 30 years in a state correctional facility.

Joseph Michael Mazza, 33, appeared in Blair County court alongside Chief Public Defender Julia Burke for his sentencing in front of President Judge Wade A. Kagarise.

Mazza was charged in two separate but related cases concerning the armed robberies, during which he left his baby unattended in his vehicle.

Across the two cases, Mazza was charged with three felony counts of robbery, two felony counts of endangering the welfare of children, firearms not to be carried without a license, possession of a firearm prohibited, a single felony count of conspiracy to commit robbery, two misdemeanor counts each of making terroristic threats, recklessly endangering another person, theft, possession of a weapon, receiving stolen property and simple assault. He was denied bail in both cases.

Mazza received the sentence of 180 to 360 months’ incarceration after pleading guilty to two felony counts each of robbery, firearms not to be carried without a license, possession of a firearm prohibited, a single felony count of criminal conspiracy to commit robbery and two misdemeanor counts each of making terroristic threats, endangering the welfare of a child, recklessly endangering another person, theft, receiving stolen property, possession of a weapon and simple assault.

In addition to the prison sentence, Kagarise ordered Mazza to pay about $6,394 in restitution to the two store owners and about $1,200 in fines.

Prior to handing down Mazza’s sentence, Kagarise heard from Blair County District Attorney Pete Weeks and Chief Public Defender Julia Burke regarding the plea deal.

Weeks told Kagarise that funds were seized from Mazza as evidence in the case that were believed to be stolen proceeds. He said he believed “it would be appropriate to release” the funds to the Costs, Fines and Restitution Collection Department to go toward Mazza’s restitution repayment.

When Kagarise told Weeks that Mazza would have to agree to the release, Burke said Mazza agreed.

Weeks then asked Kagarise to impose consecutive sentences for Mazza’s robbery and child endangerment charges. He described the cases as “extremely serious,” saying that not only did Mazza commit two armed robberies that day, but also had a previous robbery conviction.

“He’s facing a mandatory 10-year sentence in that case alone,” Weeks said.

He added that Mazza continued to commit the same or worse crimes and believed the two armed robberies were drug related.

Mazza also took his infant child along for the robberies, which Weeks told Kagarise was “extremely troubling.”

“He has an extremely disturbing criminal history, both as a juvenile and as an adult,” Weeks said.

He did commend Mazza for appearing “to take accountability for his actions.”

In her remarks, Burke said the presentence investigation “illuminated the fact that Mazza had a very, very difficult life” and that he lacked both guidance and good role models.

She told Kagarise that as Mazza aged, his offenses occurred farther apart in time and that his behavior “has markedly changed” since his incarceration began.

“He’ll be into his mid-40s until he’s eligible for release, and that’s just eligible,” Burke said, noting he would then have to prove he was no longer a danger to the community in order to be released.

Mazza then spoke to Kagarise, first apologizing to the “innocent victims” of the case and then to the community at large.

“No one deserves to live in fear,” Mazza said.

He told Kagarise “because of my actions” he’ll have to explain to his daughter what he did and that he’ll “miss moments (with her) I’ll never get back.”

“I have every intention to focus my time to ensure something like this never happens again,” Mazza said.

Kagarise told Mazza he could “see you’re taking what you did seriously.”

“I believe what you say,” Kagarise said.

He added that, despite the serious sentence, he hoped Mazza would have many years of his life ahead of him once he was released.

After handing down Mazza’s sentence, Kagarise wished him good luck.

All other charges against Mazza were merged and withdrawn.

The charges across Mazza’s two cases stem from a traffic stop in mid-July 2023, when Mazza and co-defendant Amber Lyn Herren, 29, were arrested near Port Matilda. The couple’s baby was found in the vehicle, along with the gun allegedly used in the robberies, court documents state.

Altoona police responded to the Unique Tobacco Store, 1313 Valley View Blvd., for an armed robbery earlier that day. While on scene, police were notified of a second robbery, this one at the Dollar General in the Bald Eagle area of Tyrone, with dispatchers reporting that the descriptions matched those involved in the tobacco store robbery.

A search of Mazza turned up a Remington single stack pistol magazine loaded with rounds for a 9mm. After police secured a search warrant on the vehicle, a Remington R51 9mm pistol, loaded with seven rounds, was found in a diaper bag, along with $5,580 in cash. An additional $5 bill was found on the front passenger floor. Investigators also found the ball cap, bandanas and gloves allegedly worn by Mazza, the police report states.

Herren faces similar charges to Mazza and remains free on $25,000 bail in each of her two cases related to the robberies. She is scheduled to appear for a plea hearing in front of Judge Paula M. Aigner on May 8.

Mirror Staff Writer Rachel Foor-Musselman is at 814-946-7458.