Houston man takes plea deal for murdering his 19-year-old friend in 2019

HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) -- More than four years after killing his teenage friend, authorities say a Houston man has admitted to the murder and will be headed to prison.

On Jan. 18, 2019, Jalin Charles, then-18 years old, fatally shot 19-year-old Charles Robinson Jr. in southeast Houston.

Police said the teens were at a location on Scott Street when they got into an argument over Robinson's girlfriend. When officers arrived, they found Robinson dead from several gunshot wounds.

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Robinson's girlfriend told police she witnessed the shooting.

Charles was also suspected of committing a string of robberies with other suspects.

Officials believed he was part of a group of four teens tied to upward of 20 robberies across the area. Sources added the suspects attended Worthing High School.

They were suspected of robbing Metro PCS stores, as well as Subway and Shipley locations, to name a few.

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Sources say Jalin Charles and three other teens are tied to as many as 20 robberies, and is now wanted for killing another teen.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Charles' trial was delayed for years. On Monday, he entered a guilty plea for the murder of Robinson and was sentenced to 40 years in prison.

As part of the deal, multiple other charges of aggravated robbery against him were dropped, authorities said. With those additional charges, Charles could have faced up to life in prison.

ABC13 reached out to Robinson's parents to ask what they think about this. They have not responded, but his father spoke with Eyewitness News back in 2019.

"My son didn't deserve what happened to him," he said.

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