Overview
- A jury found Cudjoe Young guilty of armed robbery and attempted armed robbery on Wednesday after a roughly two‑week trial in Maricopa County.
- Prosecutors relied on cell‑phone location data, Cash App transaction records, surveillance footage and a white 2006 Chevrolet Impala with hood paint damage to link Young to the 2020 incidents.
- The trial included body‑worn camera video of Mercedes Vega identifying Young in a photo lineup while the defense argued the digital evidence was inconclusive and Young opted not to testify.
- Young is one of three men charged in Vega’s April 2023 kidnapping and killing, prosecutors have filed motions seeking the death penalty for Young and co‑defendant Sencere Hayes, and the homicide trial is set to begin in October 2027.
- Vega’s family says the 2020 robbery prompted her to move before her 2023 death, and legal observers will watch whether the robbery conviction affects sentencing and the prosecutors’ theory that the homicide aimed to silence her.