3 men charged in series of armed robberies at Chicago liquor stores
CHICAGO (CBS) -- Three men have been indicted on federal charges accusing them in a string of armed robberies at Chicago liquor stores since November, including three robberies in less than an hour in January.
Ardaries Harris, 26, Jordan Fox, 24, and Roosevelt Veal, 26, each are facing federal conspiracy and weapons charges, and have been ordered held in federal custody until trial, according to federal prosecutors.
Veal and an unnamed coconspirator are accused of robbing the Super Saving Food store at 4424 W. Belmont Av. on Nov. 24. Harris, Fox, and an unnamed coconspirator are accused of robbing Buchanas Food & Liquor at 1834 W. 47th St. on Jan. 13. All three defendants and an unnamed coconspirator are accused of robbing three liquor stores in less than an hour on Jan. 15 – Mr. P Beverage Depot, at 2006 W Division St., Before You Go Liquor, at 1917 W. Fullerton Av., and Clybourn Market, at 2807 N. Clybourn Av., according to the indictment.
In all, federal prosecutors say the group stole more than $250,000 in cash during the robberies. The defendants also are suspected in additional robberies, including holdups at bars in Chicago, prosecutors said.
In January, Mr. P employee Pankajkumar Patel, who has a wife and two children, described the horror of what happened to him and another employee when the store was robbed.
He said two men jumped over the counter and put a gun to his head as he put his hands up, while two other men acted as lookouts in the parking lot. One robber punched his coworker in the face.
"His mouth took the punch," Patel said.
The robbers first took the contents of both registers – between $3,000 and $4,000 – and demanded more cash before taking both employees' cell phones.
During the robbery at Super Saving Food in November, Chicago police said the robbers shot a 46-year-old man in the shoulder. The federal indictment does not charge any of the three defendants with that shooting, but federal prosecutors said the case remains an open investigation.