Michael Santiago, Armored Car Robbery, New York 2015

A brazen daytime armed robbery conspiracy involving three men, including a corrections officer, has been foiled in the Bronx, New York. Michael Santiago, a 29-year-old corrections officer at Downstate Correctional Facility in Fishkill, New York, Kenneth Smith, and Bruce Collazo, a 20-year-old Bronx resident and known as ‘Tonz,’ were arrested this morning in Manhattan federal court.

According to the Complaint, between August and December 2015, Santiago, Smith, and Collazo, along with other members of the robbery crew who remain at large, participated in gunpoint robberies of armored car operators. On August 24, 2015, December 4, 2015, and December 15, 2015, members of the crew robbed armored car operators of thousands of dollars in cash at gunpoint. During the December 15, 2015, robbery, a member of the crew exchanged gunfire with the operator of the armored vehicle before escaping on foot.

Manhattan U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara said, ‘Michael Santiago, a corrections officer entrusted with the safekeeping of the community, Kenneth Smith, and Bruce Collazo are charged with conspiring to conduct a series of brazen daytime armed robberies, provoking gun violence on busy streets, and putting lives at risk.’

The three men are each charged with one count of conspiracy to commit Hobbs Act robbery, which carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison; and one count of using or carrying firearms during and in relation to, or possessing firearms in furtherance of, a crime of violence, which firearms were discharged, which carries a maximum sentence of life in prison, and a mandatory consecutive minimum sentence of 10 years in prison.

The investigation was led by the FBI, the NYPD, the New York State Department of Corrections and Community Supervision, and the Office of Special Investigation. This case is being handled by the Office’s General Crimes Unit, with Assistant United States Attorney Matthew Podolsky in charge of the prosecution.

The charges contained in the Complaint are merely accusations, and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

In a statement, NYC Police Commissioner William J. Bratton said, ‘This is the type of collaboration we rely on to keep our city safe. This operation, taken down earlier this morning in raids across the Bronx, is the most significant case since the re-formation of the oldest task force in law enforcement history.’

Santiago’s exact sentence or outcome is not yet known. The investigation is continuing. The maximum potential sentences in this case are prescribed by Congress and are provided here for informational purposes only, as any sentencing of the defendants will be determined by the judge.

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