HAVERSTRAW – A drone buzzing overhead captured robbery footage that led police to arrest three men on a felony charge, authorities said.
A drone had been conducting surveillance in the village on July 11 when the men are accused of jumping a 61-year-old man as he left his home on Main Street, authorities said.
Haverstraw Police Chief John Gould said Rockland District Attorney’s Office detectives had been operating the drone on an undisclosed mission when the robbery occurred.
The District Attorney’s Office said a grand jury indictment says the men approached the older man as he walked down the front porch steps. The three men grabbed him by his shirt and hit him in his right eye, the District Attorney’s Office said in a news release on Wednesday, July 23.
The older man was then struck behind his neck on New Main Street, where the three men are accused of surrounding the man as he fell to the ground, the release said. They then ripped a silver chain necklace from his neck and fled toward Clove Avenue, the release said.
The older man suffered an injury to his eye and substantial pain, the release said.
Three arrested, indicted for Haverstraw robbery
Haverstraw police arrested Valadmair Fogle, 19, David Ross, 23, and Elijah Eurie, 18, all of West Haverstraw. A Rockland grand jury indicted all three men on two counts each of second-degree robbery. Upon conviction, the men face potential 3 1/2 years to 15 years in state prison.
All three men were originally arraigned in Haverstraw village Justice Court.
All three are scheduled to appear on Friday, July 25, for arraignment on the indictment before County Court Judge Djinsad Desir in the County Courthouse in New City.
Fogle has been held in the county jail since July 12 on bail plans for $5,000 cash or bonds of # $25,000 or $100,000. Prosecutors said they sought $100,000 bail to $500,000 bond. Ross and Eurie were released after making bail requirements that started with $5,000 cash.
The District Attorney’s Office declined to comment on the grand jury proceedings and the use of drone footage.
“We are unable to release any video evidence at this time as the case is pending,” the office’s statement said.
Supervising Assistant District Attorney Meghan Garvey is the prosecutor.
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This article originally appeared on Rockland/Westchester Journal News: Drone surveillance leads to three men being charged with felony robbery in Haverstraw
Reporting by Steve Lieberman, Rockland/Westchester Journal News / Rockland/Westchester Journal News
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