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Jesus Ventura’s strange and very public criminal saga began back in March, when the 37-year-old firefighter and paramedic walked into a firehouse and started waving a pistol around. The gun went off, although no one was injured, and Ventura fled; he was arrested a week or so later at his home. But after being placed on leave and released from jail, Ventura made another bad decision and went and robbed a bank. He was at least polite about the whole thing, apologizing to the teller and then leaving her a $20 tip as he left.
Ventura was arrested the same day at a nearby business, carrying a black backpack with $1,900 inside. A month or so later, after what we imagine was a pretty open-and-shut internal investigation, Ventura’s tenure with the Dallas Fire-Rescue was terminated.
In a court appearance in April, Ventura told the judge he suffers from bipolar disorder, depression and anxiety. He pleaded guilty to one count of bank robbery bank in September, and under the conditions of his plea deal faced up to 20 years in prison and a fine of more than $250,000.
This morning, though, U.S. District Judge Ed Kinkeade sentenced him to just 46 months. The Morning News reports that as the judge issued the ruling, Ventura collapsed to the floor. Reporter Kevin Krause writes that he appeared to be conscious, laying on his side as his body shook. Paramedics arrived and took him away by ambulance to be treated; we don’t yet know his current condition.
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