Three men have been federally indicted in what prosecutors described as a brazen armed hijacking of an Apple delivery truck outside the Americana Manhasset shopping center that resulted in the theft of more than $1.2 million in Apple merchandise.
Federal prosecutors announced Thursday that Alan Christhofer Cedeno-Ferrer, 27, of the Bronx, Michael Mejia-Nunez, 29, of New York City, and Ennait Alexis Sirett-Padilla, 24, of New York City, were charged with Hobbs Act robbery, Hobbs Act robbery conspiracy, and interstate transportation of stolen property.
According to prosecutors, the robbery happened around 8 a.m. on Jan. 3, 2026, as two delivery workers prepared to unload Apple products outside the Apple Store at Americana Manhasset in Nassau County.
Authorities said three masked men armed with handguns approached the workers after pulling up in a black Honda Accord. One worker was forced into the back of the truck and zip-tied, while the second worker was ordered at gunpoint into the driver’s seat and forced to drive the truck to a secluded parking area behind an office building on Northern Boulevard in Manhasset.
Once there, prosecutors said both workers were zip-tied inside the cargo area while the suspects transferred the shipment into a rented Home Depot box truck. The truck allegedly contained hundreds of Apple products, including MacBooks, iPhones, iPads, Apple Watches, and accessories valued at more than $1.2 million.
Investigators said the victims were locked inside the truck and left behind in freezing temperatures before one of them managed to free himself and call 911. Federal prosecutors said the victims were “left for dead” in the cargo area while temperatures were in the 20s.
Authorities tracked the suspects through Nassau County, Queens, the Bronx, Manhattan, and into New Jersey using GPS data, license plate readers, and surveillance cameras.
Prosecutors said the stolen Apple merchandise was taken to a self-storage facility in Paterson, New Jersey, where investigators allegedly captured Mejia-Nunez and Sirett-Padilla on surveillance video renting a storage unit and unloading the merchandise.
The Home Depot truck was later abandoned in the Bronx. Investigators said Cedeno-Ferrer’s fingerprints were recovered from rental paperwork found inside the vehicle. Prosecutors also allege he rented the truck using a fake Pennsylvania driver’s license.
Federal investigators said additional evidence tied the defendants to the robbery, including surveillance footage, cell phone location data, fingerprint evidence, Apple device activation records, rental documents, and victim testimony.
Court filings also allege Cedeno-Ferrer discussed purchasing firearms through WhatsApp months before the robbery.
U.S. Attorney Joseph Nocella Jr. described the robbery as a “violent and brazen daytime robbery” that endangered the public at one of Long Island’s busiest shopping centers.
FBI officials said the suspects allegedly held the delivery workers at gunpoint before hijacking the truck and stealing the shipment.
Authorities arrested the defendants Thursday morning during a joint operation involving the FBI, Nassau County Police Department, and New York City Police Department.
If convicted, the defendants face up to 30 years in federal prison.
The defendants were scheduled to be arraigned Thursday afternoon in federal court in Central Islip.
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