CHARLOTTE, N.C. – Four teenagers were arrested after police said they robbed a Verizon Wireless cellphone store in Indian Trail at gunpoint Wednesday morning.
According to the Union County Sheriff’s Office, two masked men entered the Verizon Wireless on Highway 74 just before 11:30 a.m. Deputies said the suspects forced an employee to fill a bag with phones before speeding away from the store. Two employees and three customers were inside the store at the time of the robbery.
Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police were tipped off that the suspects were traveling toward Charlotte when officers located the vehicle. Deputies determined the suspects abandoned their original getaway vehicle in a driveway on Stallings Road before speeding toward Charlotte in a Kia SUV. Police said the driver refused to pull over and led officers in pursuit before crashing on Pleasant Grove Road near Clinton Drive around noon.
Two of the suspects ran from the crash but were quickly taken into custody. Officers recovered several stolen cellphones, as well as two handguns believed to have been used during the robbery. Both firearms were reported stolen.
Sean Christopher Rutherford, 19, of Charlotte, and Olquandri Shemik McNeal, 19, of Charlotte, were charged with robbery with a dangerous weapon, conspiracy to commit robbery with a dangerous weapon, five counts of second-degree kidnapping and possession of a stolen vehicle. Two juveniles were also arrested and face the same charges.
Investigators said more charges are likely as the investigation continues.
