TYLER, Texas — A man who robbed the Razzoo's Cajun Café manager in Tyler at gunpoint in 2018 was sentenced to life in prison Thursday.
Smith County jurors sentenced Gabriel Johnson, 44, to life in prison after finding him guilty of aggravated robbery.
The prosecution presented evidence showing that Johnson robbed the Razzoo’s restaurant manager after the business closed in the early morning hours of Nov. 19, 2018.
Johnson held the victim at gunpoint while he left the restaurant and forced him to go back inside. Once inside, Johnson made the manager open the safe, which had about $2,500 in cash, according to the Smith County District Attorney's Office.
Johnson tied the manager up on the floor of the restaurant office. Johnson said if the manager moved he would come back and kill him, the DA's Office said.
Jurors also heard evidence about Johnson's extensive criminal history, including six prior felony convictions. He was on parole for narcotics trafficking when he committed the robbery, the DA's Office news release read.
He will have to serve 30 years in prison before becoming eligible for parole.
