Defendants Charged with Robbery in Design District

MIAMI – On Dec. 6, three of five defendants appeared in federal court on an indictment charging conspiracy to commit Hobbs Act robbery, Hobbs Act robbery, and brandishing and discharging a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence.

According to the indictment, on Dec. 15, 2023, Ildemar Jose Chirinos-Torres, Briann Ricardo Hernandez-Castillo, Larry Junior Mendez-Ruiz, Alejandro Moises, and Raynner Jorland Pacheco-Sandoval, all from Venezuela, drove in three separate vehicles throughout the Miami Design District searching for wealthy victims to rob. Alejandro Moises drove the getaway vehicle occupied by co-defendants Chirinos-Torres and Hernandez-Castillo. According to the allegations, Chirinos-Torres and Hernandez-Castillo were seen on surveillance video exiting the vehicle, walking to a valet stand, and then robbing at gunpoint a tourist wearing a high-end watch valued at up to $100,000. When the defendants fled, undercover detectives investigating a separate matter followed behind in their unmarked vehicles. While following them, Chirinos-Torres shot multiple rounds at one undercover detective. Fortunately, the detective was not struck by gunfire. Pacheco-Sandoval served as the look-out to identify victims wearing high end jewelry. Mendez-Ruiz picked up Chirinos-Torres and Hernandez-Castillo after they abandoned the getaway vehicle driven by Moises. Some of the defendants drove to and out of Florida to commit the robbery.

Mendez-Ruiz, Moises, and Pacheco-Sandoval were ordered detained pending trial. Their co-defendants Chirinos-Torres and Hernandez-Castillo have yet to be brought in for their initial appearances.

U.S. Attorney Markenzy Lapointe for the Southern District of Florida, Special Agent in Charge Christopher A. Robinson of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF), Miami Field Division, Chief of Police Manuel A. Morales of the Miami Police Department, and Director Stephanie V. Daniels of the Miami-Dade Police Department (MDPD) made the announcement.

ATF and City of Miami Police Department investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Altanese Phenelus is prosecuting the case.

An indictment is a merely an allegation. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce gun violence and other violent crime, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone.  On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.  For more information about Project Safe Neighborhoods, please visit Justice.gov/PSN.

Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at www.flsd.uscourts.gov or at http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov under case number 24-cr-20405.

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