Crime & Courts

Anchorage brothers charged with $230K armored truck robbery

Two brothers have been charged with bank robbery in Anchorage federal court in connection with the December robbery in which authorities said two men held up an armored truck stopped at a bank and made off with about $230,000.

Prosecutors filed charges accusing the brothers, Jarron and Jafari Lewis-Daniel, of robbing an Axiom armored truck while it was parked in front of the Wells Fargo DeBarr Road branch on Dec. 23, according to criminal complaints filed against the men.

The defendants were arrested on Wednesday when agents from the FBI's violent crimes squad served warrants on their shared apartment.

Around 11:30 in the morning the day of the robbery, an employee making a delivery of cash was approached from behind by two men. When he opened the truck's rear doors, he heard a man's voice, the employee told investigators.

"Don't do anything stupid," the man said. The employee turned around and saw two people; one of them pointed two guns at him, the complaint says. The robbers wore hoods over their heads and had latex gloves, it says.

The employee dropped a bag of money and raised his arms; the robbers picked up the bag and ran away, according to the complaint. Prosecutors said they got away with $230,000 in cash, along with $50 in pennies.

A witness told police they'd seen the robbers leave in a white Chevrolet Impala. Video surveillance was used to track down the car, which was registered to Jafari Lewis-Daniel, the complaint says.

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In the meantime, the brothers bought three vehicles with the stolen money: a Honda motorcycle, a Dodge truck and an Audi. Prosecutors say all of the vehicles — costing $6,000 to $12,000 — were bought with cash.

After speaking with the people who sold the vehicles and running background checks using unpaid bills found in the Impala, FBI agents served warrants on the brothers' apartment.

"During a search of (the apartment) in Anchorage, Alaska agents found a total of $97,888 divided between the three bedrooms in the apartment," the complaint says. A laundry basket in a closet held $23,000, it says.

Several recently purchased expensive items were found in the apartment, according to the complaint: two Bulova watches and a $2,000 flat-screen TV.

Blue and white latex gloves similar to the ones seen in the robbery were also located.

Jafari Lewis-Daniel said he didn't take part in the robbery but claimed to have let two men named "Mike" and "Daryl" borrow his car in exchange for $40,000, according to the complaint.

He made an initial court appearance Wednesday in Anchorage. A federal public defender was appointed to represent him, according to court records. Jarron Lewis-Daniel hasn't appeared in court.

Jerzy Shedlock

Jerzy Shedlock is a former reporter for Alaska Dispatch News. He left the ADN in 2017.

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