Men Stole $183K In Cash And Jewelry During Gunpoint Robbery: Cops

FORT LEE, NJ — Two men were accused of stealing $183,000 in cash and jewelry during a gunpoint robbery at 2 a.m. Monday morning, police announced.

Shawn Harewood and Jonathan Rickettes were each charged with first-degree armed robbery, Capt. Matthew Hintze said in a press release. A third man remains at large.

Police received a report at 2 a.m. of an armed robbery. Victims Safaree Samuels and Corey Bryant stated two men ordered to the ground at gunpoint and stole $183,000 in jewelry and cash from them before fleeing, Hintze said.

Officers Patrick Cillo and Natalie Mateus saw a black Cadillac Escalade without license plates a few blocks away from the robbery, the captain said. The Escalade made a sharp U-turn and went onto the upper level of the George Washington Bridge, he said.

The officers tried to stop the Cadillac, but it kept going on the bridge and into New York City. Police followed the vehicle onto the southbound Henry Hudson Parkway, Hintze said.

The driver lost control of the Cadillac, hit a concrete divider, and stopped at the West 158th Street exit, the captain said.

Three people jumped out of the Cadillac, crossed the parkway, and ran into the woods, Hintze said.

Fort Lee Police gave the New York City and Port Authority police departments a description of the suspects. The New York City Police Department later arrested Harewood and Rickettes.

Harewood and Rickettes were charged with first-degree robbery and are in police custody in New York awaiting extradition to New Jersey, Hintze said. Additional charges are pending as the investigation continues. Another suspect remains at large.

Police did not say exactly where the robbery took place. Hintze could not be immediately reached for additional comment.

Anyone with additional information regarding the robbery is asked to call the Fort Lee Police Department Detective Bureau at 201-592-3510 or Fort Lee Police Headquarters at 201-592-3700.