Prosecutor: Hillsborough Man, Two Others Busted For Armed Bank Robbery In Somerset County

Three men have been charged in connection with an armed bank robbery in Somerset County on Friday, according to authorities.

For a brief period of time, schools in the area of the bank were “locked down” as a precaution while the robbery was being investigated on Friday, authorities said.

The suspects, Luis Castaneda, 39, of Bound Brook; Carmelo Soto Jr., 24, of Manville; and Jaime Ayuso, 39, of Hillsborough, allegedly took an undisclosed amount of cash inside Somerset Savings Bank in Somerville, according to the Somerset County Prosecutor’s Office.

At approximately 8:50 a.m. on Friday, Soto and Castaneda allegedly entered the Somerset Savings Bank located on West End Avenue; Soto then jumped over the counter while defendant Castaneda brandished a hand gun, according to the authorities.

Ayuso allegedly remained in a pickup truck parked outside the bank. After taking the money, Soto and Castaneda then fled the bank and entered the pickup truck, according to authoroties.

Shortly after leaving the bank parking lot, the suspects were stopped by agents with the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and detectives with the Somerset County Prosecutors Office and Somerville Police Department.

The suspects were removed from the vehicle and placed under arrest. Currency taken from the bank was observed in the vehicle, and a loaded hand gun was also recovered, authorities said.

All three suspects were subsequently lodged in the county jail. Bail for defendants Soto and Castaneda was set at $200,000, cash only, and defendant Ayuso’s bail was set at $100,000, authorities said.

Photos: Carmelo Soto Jr., 24, of Manville; Jaime Ayuso, 39, of Hillsborough; Luis Castaneda, 39, of Bound Brook