The arrests of two Philadelphia men in Maryland after the smash-and-grab robbery of a White Marsh Mall jewelry store in September helped federal agents break up a Philadelphia-based gang accused in 25 similar robberies in several states, according to federal authorities.
Rolex watches, gold rings and diamonds worth $2.2 million were taken in those robberies last year, the Philadelphia office of the FBI said.
Six of the robberies occurred in Maryland, four of them in Baltimore County. Littman Jewelers in White Marsh Mall was robbed twice. Jewelry worth $140,000 was taken in the second robbery at the store. But that robbery also ended in the arrests of Wade Knight and Marvin Cordel Adams, after a chase by police through Harford and Cecil counties.
The Littman jewelry store in the Towson Town Center, Best Products Co. in the Towson Market Place and two jewelry stores in Montgomery County were each robbed once.
The indictments of Mr. Knight, Mr. Adams and 12 others, including two Philadelphia jewelry store owners, were announced Friday in Philadelphia. All are suspected of being part of the 46th Street Gang, so-called because its members gathered or lived in the vicinity of 46th Street and Fairmont Avenue in West Philadelphia.
The gang was accused of committing the robberies, allegedly on the instructions of the two store owners, identified in the federal indictment as Robert Cott, owner of Robert Cott Jewelers, and Alexander Khaytin, owner of Golden Fever Jewelry, both on Philadelphia's Jewelers Row.
The federal charges against the 14 include conspiracy to violate the Hobbs Act, which prohibits interference with interstate commerce, interference with interstate commerce by robbery, and receipt and transportation of stolen property.
Mr. Knight and Mr. Adams are being held in the Federal Correction Center in Fairton, N.J., pending a detention hearing Wednesday in the U.S. District Court for Eastern Pennsylvania. They were transported from the Baltimore County Detention Center last Wednesday by federal marshals.
Mr. Knight and Mr. Adams had been held in Baltimore County on charges of robbery, armed robbery and auto theft after the White Marsh Mall robbery. Baltimore County State's Attorney Sandra A. O'Connor said yesterday she didn't know whether the state charges would be pursued, now that federal charges have been brought.
