A Cheyenne teen who was set to be sentenced for attempted manslaughter next week is in jail a little early for allegedly beating someone up and stealing his shoes.
Joey Carabajal Jr., who is now about 19, was charged May 6, 2022, with attempted second-degree murder for stabbing a man at a Cheyenne bar the day before.
He now is scheduled for a Nov. 13 preliminary hearing in Cheyenne Circuit Court for a new felony case where he’s accused of beating up another youth, stealing his shoes and PlayStation, and pointing a gun at him.
Carabajal had been charged with attempted second-degree murder, but had instead pleaded guilty to attempted manslaughter in a deal with prosecutors. He was out on bond in some of his last free days before a Nov. 13 sentencing on that case, at the time of his latest alleged assault.
The sentencing hearing is now postponed to an unknown date.
Aiming For The Stomach
Carabajal pleaded guilty and accepted a plea agreement in his manslaughter case July 14, stipulating that his case prosecutor would switch from charging attempted murder to attempted manslaughter.
Manslaughter carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison, whereas people convicted of attempted second-degree murder can face up to life in prison.
Carabajal also gave a detailed confession to District Court Judge Thomas Campbell when he pleaded guilty. He said he went with his father to the Lamp Lounge in Cheyenne and saw Vincent Phillips on May 5, when he was still 17 years old.
He and Phillips have a history, Carabajal told the judge.
Phillips, who was with a woman, flipped him off, so he yelled out “f*** you guys,” he told the judge at his change-of-plea hearing.
He pulled over, got out, walked up to Phillips and confronted him about alleged past threats.
Phillips told the woman he was with to go and grab his gun, Carabajal said.
Phillips walked into the Lamp Lounge doorway, and Carabajal followed him.
“He act liked he jumped at me,” Carabajal said. “I swung with the – it wasn’t a knife, but it was like a – like a plastic knife but with a real blade in it. And I swung trying to strike him in the stomach but once he jumped at me I striked (sic) him in the chest.”
Carabajal looked at Phillips, he said. Phillips looked at him.
“And I just walked away sir,” he told the court.
Out On Bond
Carabajal was out at bond for months during his manslaughter prosecution, including recently.
Cheyenne Police Officer Corrin Campbell went to Norma Court on Oct. 29 for an assault report.
There the officer contacted Jecori Corbin, who is 18 this year. The teen said multiple “unknown people” beat him up, according to an affidavit filed in Carabajal’s newest criminal case.
Corbin’s jacket, shirt and mouth were bloody. His upper lip was swollen. A blue and purple bruise mottled the flesh under his left eye, says the affidavit. An ambulance arrived on scene, but Corbin declined a trip to the hospital.
The officer took Corbin to his home, “where he later changed his story and described the suspects who assaulted him,” the document says.
Corbin was at a party when his friend received a photograph of (the friend’s) sister with a tooth knocked out and the other males went to Carbajal’s home.
Corbin was reportedly afraid to enter the home because he claims accused murderer Johnny Munoz as a “brother,” and Munoz’s alleged shooting victim was a teenage girl related to Carabajal.
But a confrontation followed anyway.
Joey Carabajal Jr. punched Corbin, then beat him up, the affidavit alleges.
Another relative, Jaidah Carabajal, reportedly said “his brother killed my sister, kill him now.”
And another male, Zachary Clark Carabajal, allegedly pointed a gun at Corbin and said “I’ma blow this n****.”
Some of the other males took Corbin’s shoes and stole his phone debit card and a backpack containing his PlayStation 4, green polo shorts and charging cords, the affidavit claims.
Corbin got up from the ground and ran to the gate in the back yard, he said. He unlatched the gate and ran through the alley.
Joey Carabajal Jr. pointed the gun at him and said “I’m gonna f***ing kill you Jecori,” the affidavit alleges.
A police sergeant who went to the scene later to collect evidence saw two sets of footprints leading from the back gate through the alley, the document says.
The new charges of aggravated robbery and aggravated assault are both felonies. The latter carries up to 10 years in prison and $10,000 in fines. The former carries between five and 25 years in prison and up to $10,000 in fines.
His bond is set at $20,000 cash-only.
Clair McFarland can be reached at clair@cowboystatedaily.com.
