Tracking data from cell phone stolen by defendant provided his location to police who arrested him on Warburton Avenue after a foot chase
Westchester County District Attorney Miriam E. Rocah announced that a Yonkers man was sentenced on June 16, 2023, to 12 years in state prison, with five years of post-release supervision, for a 2021 armed robbery in Yonkers.
DA Rocah said: “This was a terrifying incident for an unsuspecting victim who was coming home and held the door for someone who ultimately held him at gunpoint. Thanks to cell phone technology and the Yonkers police, this defendant was apprehended right away, and convicted by a jury of his peers.”
After a two-week trial in April 2023, a jury found Shawn Lucas, 37, guilty of Robbery in the Second Degree, Criminal Possession of a Weapon in the Third Degree, and Grand Larceny in the Fourth Degree, all felonies. The defendant was sentenced as a second felony offender.
On December 27, 2021, at approximately 7:54 p.m., the defendant followed the victim as he was entering his apartment building in Yonkers, demanded the victim’s wallet and cell phone while brandishing a loaded pellet gun, which had the appearance of a firearm. The victim handed over his cell phone and wallet, which contained $45, a debit card and identification cards.
Within hours of the incident, which was captured on surveillance video, the Yonkers Police Department arrested the defendant after tracking the victim’s cell phone to Warburton Avenue. Police observed the defendant attempting to hand another male the pellet gun and engaged in a foot pursuit, during which the defendant fell and dropped the weapon. Police recovered the pellet gun, which the victim later identified as the weapon used during the robbery.
A good Samaritan returned the victim’s wallet and ID cards after finding them on the street near his apartment building. The victim’s cell phone, cash, and debit card were never recovered.
The Westchester County District Attorney’s Office Investigators assisted with the investigation.
The case was before Judge Robert Prisco in Westchester County Court, and was prosecuted by Assistant District Attorney Elizabeth Z. Marcus of the Trials and Investigations Division. The District Attorney thanked the Yonkers Police Department for their work and collaboration on this case.
