RIDGEWOOD — A man was charged with a pair of robberies at the same intersection after allegedly attacking two people for their cell phones March 17, the Queens district attorney’s office said.
Demetrio Velez, who the New York Post reported is 20, approached another young man around 5:10 p.m. at Stanhope Street and Fairview Avenue, according to a criminal complaint filed by the DA’s office. Velez and an accomplice held the man down and Velez punched him in the face before stealing the chain around his neck and his T−Mobile Sidekick phone, the DA’s office said.
Then at 5:35 p.m., Velez and his companion approached another man, the DA said. Both Velez and the other unnamed assailant punched the second victim in the face after stealing his T−Mobile Sidekick phone.
If convicted, Velez faces up to 25 years in prison. His arraignment information was not immediately available.
