This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2011, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
On the night of April 2, a man in black, with a cloth covering his face, pointed a gun at a woman at a Taylorsville ATM and said, "Give me the money."
The woman shoved $80 in the man's hand and sped away as he tried to open her door, court documents state.
Since then, officials say Helama Jose Bar Pragana has carried out more than a dozen robberies, mostly at ATMs, around the Salt Lake Valley.
The 22-year-old Kearns man was charged Tuesday in 3rd District Court with 39 felonies in connection with an eight-month crime spree.
Pragana is currently being held at the Salt Lake County Jail with bail set at $1,000,007.
According to the charges, Pragana would generally approach his victims as they were withdrawing money from the ATM and rob them at gunpoint. Prosecutors allege that Pragana forced some female victims to drive to another location where he would sexually assault them.
Pragana also robbed two Dollar Tree stores at gunpoint, charges state.
Unified Police arrested Pragana last week at a business near 500 West and 200 North.
The charges against Pragana include 16 counts of aggravated robbery, three counts of aggravated burglary, four counts of aggravated kidnapping and one count of aggravated sex abuse, all first-degree felonies.