WINFIELD - The woman accused of stealing $27,000 from a Putnam County poker game last year pleaded guilty to armed robbery and agreed to testify against her alleged accomplice Thursday.

Jacqueline Dennis, 28, is one of two women accused of robbing a group of men at gunpoint in November 2007 in a storage building behind a bar on W.Va. 34 near Hurricane.

As part of her plea agreement with Putnam County prosecutors, Dennis will be sentenced to no less than 10 years in prison.

The agreement states Dennis will also cooperate with county law enforcement and testify against Kimberly Steinbrecher, her accused accomplice, if Steinbrecher chooses to go forward with a trial.

Steinbrecher, 45, has not been indicted. She has been charged with two counts of armed robbery.

The plea agreement also states law enforcement can require Dennis to submit to a polygraph test.

During Thursday's hearing, Dennis said she knew about the high-stakes game because her "baby's daddy," Andy Assi, played in the games.

Two weeks before the robbery, Assi called and asked Dennis to bring money to the warehouse. Then, a week before the robbery, Assi and Dennis took a safe with money to the warehouse, she said.

Assi was also present during the robbery. He was scheduled to testify against Dennis at her initial hearing Sept. 4.

Contrary to statements Dennis made to police in 2007, she admitted Thursday to using a firearm during the robbery.

"I went in with a gun and robbed them," she told Judge O.C. Spaulding Thursday.

Dennis had previously told police Steinbrecher was the only one with a gun.

Dennis said Thursday she took a Glock from Assi's truck that was parked outside the storage building. She said Steinbrecher had a .38-caliber pistol that belonged to her husband.

According to the criminal complaint filed in 2007, the women stole a moneybag containing $27,000.

"That's a lie," Dennis said Thursday.

The moneybag had only $18,000, she said.

The women counted and split the money and each walked away with $9,000, she said.

WINFIELD - The woman accused of stealing $27,000 from a Putnam County poker game last year pleaded guilty to armed robbery and agreed to testify against her alleged accomplice Thursday.

Jacqueline Dennis, 28, is one of two women accused of robbing a group of men at gunpoint in November 2007 in a storage building behind a bar on W.Va. 34 near Hurricane.

As part of her plea agreement with Putnam County prosecutors, Dennis will be sentenced to no less than 10 years in prison.

The agreement states Dennis will also cooperate with county law enforcement and testify against Kimberly Steinbrecher, her accused accomplice, if Steinbrecher chooses to go forward with a trial.

Steinbrecher, 45, has not been indicted. She has been charged with two counts of armed robbery.

The plea agreement also states law enforcement can require Dennis to submit to a polygraph test.

During Thursday's hearing, Dennis said she knew about the high-stakes game because her "baby's daddy," Andy Assi, played in the games.

Two weeks before the robbery, Assi called and asked Dennis to bring money to the warehouse. Then, a week before the robbery, Assi and Dennis took a safe with money to the warehouse, she said.

Assi was also present during the robbery. He was scheduled to testify against Dennis at her initial hearing Sept. 4.

Contrary to statements Dennis made to police in 2007, she admitted Thursday to using a firearm during the robbery.

"I went in with a gun and robbed them," she told Judge O.C. Spaulding Thursday.

Dennis had previously told police Steinbrecher was the only one with a gun.

Dennis said Thursday she took a Glock from Assi's truck that was parked outside the storage building. She said Steinbrecher had a .38-caliber pistol that belonged to her husband.

According to the criminal complaint filed in 2007, the women stole a moneybag containing $27,000.

"That's a lie," Dennis said Thursday.

The moneybag had only $18,000, she said.

The women counted and split the money and each walked away with $9,000, she said.

To participate in the poker game, players had to buy in with no less than $1,000, Dennis said. Players were then given chips and cashed out at the end of the night.

Initial criminal complaints state there were six men present during the robbery.

Dennis said Thursday she was not sure how many people were in the warehouse at the time of the robbery.

As part of the plea agreement, Dennis will have to repay the money she took.

Steinbrecher turned herself in to police a few days after the robbery. Dennis, who lived in Kenova in Wayne County, was on the run for about two weeks.

Dennis had told police she spent her share of the money in Atlantic City and New York.

"I blew it. I spent it on different things - drugs, different stuff," she said Thursday.

Joseph K. Reeder, Dennis' attorney, said his client at one point did have a drug addition but he has seen no signs that she currently does.

Dennis has been incarcerated since her initial arrest in 2007 because she was unable to make her $40,000 bond, he said.

Dennis said the robbery was Steinbrecher's idea.

"[Steinbrecher] drove to Kenova and picked me up and talked me into robbing the poker game," Dennis said. "She drove us."

Judge Spaulding accepted the plea agreement Thursday, and set her sentencing hearing for 9:30 a.m. Oct. 24.

As part of the agreement, the prosecution has agreed to remain silent during the sentencing trial. 

They do reserve the right to comment when she comes up for parole.

Because Dennis said she used a firearm during the robbery, she must serve a minimum of five years, or one-third of her sentence, before she can become eligible for parole.

In November 2007, Sheriff Mark Smith said the county would not pursue illegal gambling charges against the six poker players involved in the robbery.

Reach Veronica Nett at veroni...@wvgazette.com or 348-5113.