Two men were recently indicted by a Bergen County Grand Jury on robbery charges in connection with an incident at a grocery store in Saddle Brook, New Jersey, which resulted in the injury of one victim and the near-injury of another.

On Tuesday, May 20^th, 31-year-old Franklin Lakes resident Philip Gannaway and 45-year-old Paterson resident Roy Ottino were charged with one count of robbery each, for allegedly robbery an A & P grocery store on Mayhill Street in Saddle Brook. The alleged incident, which occurred on February 19^th, involved two others who attempted to stop the offenders as they fled the scene in a Volkswagen Jetta.

According to reports, Robert Brooks, a patron of the store, was hit when he stepped in front of the vehicle, sustaining injuries to his thighs, left shoulder, elbow, and lower back. 57-year-old A & P employee Dave Van Orden was also nearly hit when he pursued the pair, but was able to photograph the car with his cell phone, document its license plate number, and note the direction in which it was traveling. He subsequently provided all of this information to law enforcement, who arrested the two men shortly thereafter.

After the incident, Saddle Brook Police Chief Robert Kugler commended Brooks and Van Orden for their service to the public and their facilitation of the police investigation. As for the two defendants in this case, they are each facing charges for robbery, which can be considered first or second degree crimes.

Under N.J.S.A. 2C:15-1, robbery is a crime of the second degree if the actor inflicts bodily injury or uses force upon another in the course of committing a theft. Second degree offenses are punishable by a term of incarceration ranging from 5 to 10 years in New Jersey State Prison. In addition, robbery is one of the crimes enumerated under New Jersey’s No Early Release Act (NERA), which requires defendants to serve 85% of the sentence imposed before becoming eligible for parole.

Police documents also indicate that Gannaway and Ottino were previously arrested for charges involving theft and drug possession, while Ottino is also facing five other burglary charges in both Bergen and Passaic counties. With this in mind, the sentencing judge may impose a harsher sentence if the accused are ultimately found guilty.

For more information pertaining to this case, access the following article: 2 accused of robbing woman at Saddle Brook grocery store indicted