Arrests Made Over Violent Armed Robbery of Casino Winner

Arrests have been made in connection with a violent armed robbery targeting a casino winner. The incident took place in El Paso, Texas, at the end of April, 2023, in a hotel parking lot after the suspects followed a woman who had just left the Sunland Park Racetrack & Casino in New Mexico.

Former Teacher and Partner Held Over Robbery

The two suspects have been identified as John Anthony Brinsfield and former teacher Jamie Marie Cowger who are now incarcerated in an El Paso jail awaiting further legal proceedings.

The pair are accused of pistol-whipping and robbing an unnamed woman who had just won $3,500 at Sunland Park Racetrack & Casino and the $700 she arrived with on April 30, 2023.

Cowager followed the woman for nine miles to a hotel on South Desert Boulevard in El Paso where Brinsfield brandished a pistol at her, demanding her money.

The frightened woman fumbled with her bag trying to remove her cell phone to retrieve the cash when Brinsfield pushed her to the floor, holding the gun at her temple before striking her across her face.

Brinsfield then got into a Chevrolet Trailblazer with an unknown driver and exited the scene.

The casino provided police officers with surveillance footage which proved crucial in identifying the suspects.

Brinsfield, a self-employed construction worker, was arrested in August after being stopped in a car displaying false license plates. Drugs and a firearm was found during a search.

The El Paso Times reported that Brinsfield was charged with unlawful possession of a firearm by a felon and manufacture/delivery of a controlled substance and is held on $95,000 bail.

Former teacher Cowger was arrested on August 18 and is currently held at El Paso County Jail with bail set at $60,000.