West View Man Heads To Court For Robbing Local Coffee Shop

A North Hills Man has been ordered to stand trial in the Dec. 14 robbery of the Island Bean Coffee Shop on McKnight Road in Ross Township.  

John Hammel, 32, waived his rights to a preliminary hearing before  He is charged with felony theft, receiving stolen property and first-degree robbery in the holdup of the drive-through coffee shop.

During the hearing, prosecutors added two misdemeanor charges to the case against Hammel and Judge Opiela set bond at $45,000.

The owners of the Island Bean Coffee Shop showed up for the hearing but were not present in the courtroom during the proceedings.  

Since Hammel's arrest last week, court documents have been filed, detailing how identified and arrested John Hammel in the robbery.

According to court documents, police responded to a home in the 300 block of Bellevue Road shortly after 6 a.m. Dec. 14 after a resident called to report that his blue 2008 Honda Odyssey minivan had been stolen.

Two hours later, police said a man driving that stolen van pulled up to the drive-through window of the Island Bean shop and took $130 in cash from the register after threatening workers with a small tire iron.

Police said they began searching for the stolen van. They located it shortly before 10 a.m. parked in the 100 block of North Freemont Avenue, and stationed an officer to wait nearby.

Within 10 minutes, police said, the officer saw two men leave a home in that block and get into the van. Police said the officer was able to take the passenger into custody, but the car’s driver ran away, leaving the van running with the keys in the ignition.

The passenger identified Hammel as the van’s driver to police, according to court documents. Based on that information, police obtained a warrant for Hammel and located him at a home in the 900 block of Wellesley Avenue.

Police said they found Hammel in the basement of that home, wearing only his underwear and tennis shoes. In his possession, however, officers said they found a coat and sweatshirt that matched the clothing worn by the suspect in the Island Bean robbery.

At the Ross Township police station, Hammel admitted to stealing the van and to robbing the coffee shop, police said.

Hammel graduated from in 1997 and is a longtime resident of the area. His lengthy criminal history dates to 1998 and includes felony convictions for theft and burglary as well as convictions for misdemeanor assault, alcohol and drug offenses. 

In September 1999, Hammel was convicted of felony escape from a state detention center.