Three Florida residents have been arrested and charged with
conspiracy to commit Hobbs Act robbery, Hobbs Act robbery, and brandishing a
firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence.
Ariana Fajardo Orshan, U.S. Attorney for the Southern
District of Florida, George L. Piro, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of
Investigation (FBI), Miami Field Office, and Anthony Rosa, Chief, Sunrise
Police Department, made the announcement.
Zyheem Ian Smith, of Orlando, Gedeon Joseph, of Clermont,
and Watverly Mortimer, of West Park, were charged by indictment with offenses
related to the December 24, 2018 armed robbery of the Yard House restaurant at
the Sawgrass Mills Mall in Sunrise, Florida (Case No. 19-CR-60055-UNGARO). The defendants have been arrested and had
their initial hearings. Mortimer was
detained after a detention hearing on February 15, 2019, before U.S. Magistrate
Judge Patrick M. Hunt in Ft. Lauderdale.
Smith and Joseph are currently being detained, following a hearing
before U.S. Magistrate Judge Thomas B. Smith in Orlando. They are awaiting transport to the Southern
District of Florida for a subsequent hearing.
According to court records, including allegations contained
in the complaint and indictment, Smith and Joseph entered the Yard House on the
morning of December 24, 2018, before the restaurant had opened, through a back
door that was opened by Mortimer, a Yard House employee. Smith and Joseph went upstairs to the
manager’s office, pointed a Glock 19X handgun at the manager, and grabbed the
manager’s cellphone. They threatened to
shoot the manager if he did not empty the safe.
Smith and Joseph left with approximately $22,000.
An indictment is only an accusation and every defendant is
presumed innocent unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of
law.
U.S. Attorney Fajardo Orshan commended the investigatory
efforts of the FBI and the Sunrise Police Department in this matter. This case is being prosecuted by Assistant
U.S. Attorney Robert Juman.
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