Miami detectives say a would-be kidnapper torched his own getaway plan when he dropped his cellphone while fleeing a Cricket Wireless in Little Haiti, a slipup that helped lead to his arrest this week in connection with a violent March 9 robbery.
What Police Say Happened Inside The Store
According to Miami police, a man walked into the Little Haiti Cricket Wireless at about 10:20 a.m. on March 9 and told the lone employee he wanted to make a payment. Investigators say he then grabbed the worker by her jacket, pushed her toward a back safe and grabbed several iPhones and Android phones before ordering her to open the back door and hand over truck keys.
The employee resisted when he tried to pull her outside and managed to close and lock the door, cutting the encounter short, authorities said. Those details were reported by Local 10.
Arrest And Custody
Miami police arrested 39-year-old Sulayman Zacchery Njie on Tuesday, June 2, after tying him to the Cricket Wireless robbery, officials said. He is being held without bond at the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center, according to the Miami-Dade Corrections Department’s Miami-Dade Corrections Department.
The Cell Phone That Gave It All Away
Surveillance footage showed a beige Motorola tumbling from the suspect’s pocket as he ran from the store, investigators said. Detectives later found the phone near the rear exit and determined it was registered in Njie’s name, according to Local 10.
Police say selfies and other photos on the handset further linked him to the store, and the employee later picked him from a photo lineup, telling detectives she was “85% sure” he was the man who robbed her. Njie was booked on four felony counts: kidnapping, burglary with assault or battery, strong-armed robbery and attempted carjacking, and court records show prior convictions and prison time, according to Local 10.
Legal Status
Njie is presumed innocent until proven guilty, and the case will move through the Miami-Dade criminal courts. Prosecutors will decide whether to file formal charges that would send the case toward trial.
