36°
The Chester County District Attorney's Office said Julio Mendoza, Louis Armstrong, and Axel Reyes are charged with felony burglary and a litany of related counts.
According to investigators, the masked trio forced their way inside a South Leopard Street home around 2 a.m. on Jan. 8. Two adult victims were awoken by the robbers, two of whom were armed with pistols and the third with a rifle, authorities said.
During the two-hour-long ordeal, officials said the trio repeatedly threatened to shoot the victims and claimed they had kidnapped the victims' daughter.
At one point, the robbers forced the homeowners into their own Mercedes and drove to their business in Philadelphia, where the trio forced them to open the safe and stole $19,500, according to the criminal complaints.
Prosecutors said they then took the victims back home before ransacking their residence for more items, including:
- Another $8,000 cash
- A pair of Apple AirPods
- $2,000 in jewelry
- $2,000 in designer clothing
- A Tokarev 7.62mm semiautomatic pistol
- Two vintage 1864 muskets
It finally ended at 4 a.m., when the trio stole their Mercedes and left the victims tied up in the attic, authorities said.
Police used license plate readers to track the stolen vehicle to East Ontario Street in Philadelphia, the DA's Office said. Latent fingerprints for Reyes and Mendoza were discovered in the car, and authorities later raided their Kensington home.
The search turned up several items stolen during the robbery as well as incriminating photos and texts, according to prosecutors.
Court records show Reyes and Armstrong are being held on $2 million and $2.5 million bonds respectively. Mendoza's bail information was not immediately available Thursday, March 28.
Click here to follow Daily Voice West Chester and receive free news updates.
