Second pleads guilty to robbery scheme
The second person involved in a 2011 robbery scheme has pleaded guilty in Mower County Court.
Hans G. Kitange, 19, of Austin, signed an Alford plea to simple robbery, a felony. In an Alford plea — a guilty plea — the defendant admits there is enough evidence to convict but does not specifically admit to the crime.
Tairicca Cierre Einfeldt, 21, the other person involved, pleaded guilty earlier this month to simple robbery, a felony. Two other felony charges for first-degree burglary and aggravated robbery were dismissed.
Police started investigating the multi-faceted case the night of Oct. 29, 2011, when they were called to Mayo Clinic Health System in Austin to talk to Einfeldt, who had been stabbed in the back. According to the court complaint, Einfeldt said she was drinking with a Hispanic man, consented to having sex with him but changed her mind. She said the man got a knife from the kitchen and said he was going to force sex on her.
Einfeldt said she was stabbed during the argument when Kitange came into the apartment and fought with the man. According to the court complaint, at the time police didn’t know how Einfeldt was stabbed or by whom.
Kitange’s story echoed Einfeldt’s with a few inconsistencies, and he changed his version a few times when interviewed, according to the court complaint. Police found an unpackaged condom on the floor of the apartment, and the Hispanic man’s neighbors — upon hearing him scream for help — checked on him and allegedly found him shirtless and fixing his pants.
Days after the crime, police contacted the man. He said he had met Einfeldt on a few occasions, who allegedly said she would have sex with him for money.
However, Einfeldt reportedly started drinking the man’s bottle of rum and looking out the window repeatedly. The man told police Einfeldt looked out the window after a couple minutes and said, “The cops aren’t coming,” at which point Kitange allegedly entered the apartment and tried to steal the man’s wallet.
According to the court complaint, a struggle ensued and led to the kitchen where Kitange yelled at Einfeldt to grab a knife. The man told police he was afraid the couple would kill him, so he took the knife, began screaming for help and stabbed Einfeldt in the back, according to court documents.
Neighbors told police they heard screams for help and checked on the situation. According to the court complaint, they never heard a woman screaming.
—Amanda Lillie contributed to this report.