By:Jeff Lipton
In the first incident, police were called to investigate a burglary at B&H Wireless, at 350A Central Ave., at 1 a.m. on Friday, Fourth Squad detectives said. A hammer was used to break the glass in the front window of the shop, and a neighbor, who observed the break-in, called police, officials said. Fourth Precinct police officers Keith Rogich and Chris Muchow responded to the scene, and after an investigation, arrested three teenagers who had fled the shop with phones, police said.
Lt. Detective Gregory Detwiller of the Fourth Squad credited the neighbor with providing the information that led to the arrests. "It's a very good arrest, and we owe it to a very concerned citizen who assisted the police by calling 911," said Detwiller.
The suspects were identified by police as Tyshaun Jacobs, 17, of Lawrence Avenue in North Lawrence; Sir Jones, 16, of Bayview Avenue in Inwood; and a 15-year-old whose name was not released because he is a minor, officials said. Jacobs and Jones were charged with third-degree burglary and were arraigned in First District Court in Hempstead on Jan. 28. The 15-year-old was charged as a juvenile.
As a result of an investigation by the Fourth Squad and the Nassau County Robbery Squad, Jacobs was also charged with one count of first-degree robbery and one count of second-degree robbery in connection with crimes that were committed last year, police said. Those charges stem from a robbery that took place at Cedarhurst Wines and Liquors, at 216 Rockaway Turnpike in Cedarhurst, on Oct. 16, and another at B&H Wireless on Nov. 17, police said.
In the liquor store robbery, police said, two suspects, Jacobs and an alleged accomplice who has been named and may be indicted this week, tried to buy liquor on two occasions, but were turned away because they did not have the proper ID, Detwiller said. The third time, the suspects walked in armed with a gun and took two bottles of liquor, authorities said. They also tried to take cash from the register before running away.
"They really did a good job," the owner of the liquor store, who identified himself only as Lochan, said of the police work. "They definitely helped the community, and they helped us, too."
In the robbery at B&H Wireless, Jacobs and another alleged accomplice walked into the shop and, by force, took three cell phones valued at about $1,600, police said. The accomplice is being sought in that robbery, Detwiller said.
In the second incident last weekend, police arrested five suspects who were found in a car with an automatic weapon, detectives said. The suspects were traveling in a blue 1996 Honda at 5:50 a.m. last Saturday when Fourth Precinct police officer Fritz St. Jean observed them passing through a red light at Route 878 and Broadway, police said.
St. Jean pulled the car over and, as he approached the vehicle, observed what appeared to be a handgun behind the driver's seat. St. Jean radioed for backup, the suspects were ordered out of the car, and police recovered a .45 caliber automatic pistol, detectives said.
Arrested and charged with third-degree criminal possession of a weapon were Bernabe Cardona, 20, of Springfield, Mass.; Tameka Moore, 29, of Beach 30th Street in Far Rockaway, Queens; and Jean Charles, 31, Dalmorlie Williamson, 20, and Andrew Carroll, 31, all from Jamaica, Queens. All five were arraigned in First District Court in Hempstead on Jan. 30.
The eight arrests can be attributed to alert police officers on patrol and new aggressive policies involving car stops, police officials said. "It was good police work," said Detwiller. "The officer [St. Jean] observed the guys going through a red light, which gave him probable cause to pull them over, which led to the gun arrest."
Comments about this story? JLipton@liherald.com or (516) 569-4000 ext. 204.
