A 49-year-old Davenport suspect is in custody after police say he was involved in a robbery then offered officers $1 million to let him go.
Ricardo Esparza faces felony charges of bribery and second-degree robbery, court records say.
Shortly after 8 p.m. Tuesday, officers responded to the area of the 1200 block of West 6th Street in response to a robbery.
A victim was walking west in the alley south of West 6th Street in the 1200 block when Esparza began to follow her, an arrest affidavit says.
The victim turned toward Esparza, who grabbed the straps of her purse, which was on her shoulder. Esparza then punched the victim in the face while he pulled on her purse. The victim did not have any injuries from being punched, the affidavit says.
Esparza was detained a short distance from the robbery scene and was determined to be a suspect, the affidavit says. After he was placed in the rear of a squad car, he was read his Miranda Rights.
While in the back seat of the squad car (Esparza) offered officers $1 million to release him, the affidavit says. Esparza “advised that he could provide officers with the money in cash or transfer the money directly into their bank accounts.”
Officers asked if he was trying to bribe them and Esparza confirmed that he was. “The defendant offered the money in hopes to persuade officers not to arrest him,” the affidavit says.
Esparza, who is being held on a $10,000 cash-only bond in Scott County Jail, is set for a preliminary hearing May 27 in Scott County Court.