Armando Robles
Name: Armando Robles
Alias: Chato
Birth Name: Armando Robles Rosales
Hometown: Mexicali, Baja California, Mexico
Birthplace: Jalisco, Mexico
Stance: Southpaw
Pro Boxer: Record
Legal Troubles
In February of 2004, Armando Robles Rosales was convicted of dealing methamphetamines and re-entering the United States illegally and sentenced to seven years in prison, followed by deportation to his native Mexico. In ordering Armando Robles to serve 87 months behind bars, U.S. District Judge Dee Benson noted the particularly sad circumstances of the case. The judge noted the attendance of Robles' family, including his young wife, and supporters from the state's boxing industry. "This is a sad, sad situation all the way around when a young man gets involved in meth trafficking," Benson said. "He's a good person in many respects." Robles, 24, pleaded guilty in 2003 to possession of methamphetamine with the intent to distribute. Federal prosecutors say Robles had repeated contact with a confidential informant, to whom he supplied a large quantity of meth on at least one occasion.
As Utah's reigning welterweight champion and the state's then-highest ranked professional boxer, Robles had been called a role model for Hispanic youth around the state. Jay Fullmer, Robles' trainer and family friend, told the Deseret Morning News in October that the youth in his gym admired Robles. He's representing a whole lot of his people if they keep him here, and helping them by keeping the young kids out of trouble," Fullmer said. "The kids who come to our gym look up to Armando. They work out so they can be like Armando."
The charge against Robles traditionally carries a 10-year minimum mandatory sentence, which Benson reduced by nearly three years. He recommended Robles serve his time in a federal prison near California, where he has family, and that Robles be enrolled in a boot-camp program that may allow for a reduction in his sentence.
Robles prison sentence kept him out of the ring from June 2003 to August 2009.