Three Men Indicted in Armed Hijacking of Apple Products Truck at Long Island Mall

Federal prosecutors unsealed a three-count indictment Thursday charging Alan Christhofer Cedeno-Ferrer, Michael Mejia-Nunez and Ennait Alexis Sirett-Padilla with the armed hijacking of a delivery truck carrying Apple products at the Americana Manhasset mall in Manhasset, New York.

The indictment, returned in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York, names the three men in each count: Hobbs Act robbery, Hobbs Act robbery conspiracy and interstate transportation of stolen property. The defendants are scheduled for arraignment this afternoon before U.S. Magistrate Judge Anne Y. Shields in Central Islip.

The charges cover a single armed robbery that removed an entire truckload of consumer electronics from interstate commerce. Under the Hobbs Act the government must prove the robbery obstructed, delayed or affected commerce or the movement of any article or commodity in commerce. The interstate-transportation count applies once stolen goods that originated in one state cross into another.

The case proceeds under standard federal criminal timelines. After arraignment the parties will receive discovery, file pretrial motions and appear for status conferences before a district judge. Conviction on the Hobbs Act robbery count carries a maximum sentence of 20 years; the conspiracy count carries the same maximum.

Interstate transportation of stolen property valued at $5,000 or more is punishable by up to 10 years.

Downstream the indictment requires the U.S. Attorney’s Office to prepare for trial or negotiate plea agreements within the Speedy Trial Act’s 70-day window, subject to continuances. The mall operator, local delivery companies and Apple’s logistics contractors must decide whether to strengthen physical security at retail-handover locations.

Insurers covering high-value electronics shipments will recalibrate risk models for mall-based transfers in the New York metro area.

This prosecution is the latest federal response to armed cargo thefts targeting high-value consumer goods on Long Island. The Department of Justice has pursued similar Hobbs Act cases against groups that intercept delivery trucks at malls, warehouses and highway rest stops.

The statutes cited have remained the core federal tools for such robberies since the 1940s, with interstate-transportation charges layered on when goods move across state lines after the theft.