Not fast enough

Two boys were arrested at Taco Bell in Lynbrook on Dec. 29 for a robbery they had allegedly committed just moments earlier — directly across the street, at Wendy’s.

According to Fifth Squad detectives, a 16-year-old boy was eating at Wendy’s, at 580 Merrick Road, at around 10:50 p.m., when he was approached by a boy who took the victim’s cell phone from his table. The victim followed the culprit outside and tried to retrieve his phone, where he was confronted by another teen, Christopher Rivera 17, of Birchwood Drive in Valley Stream, who brandished a handgun and ordered the victim back into the restaurant. The two boys fled the scene on foot.

A short time later, they went across the street to Taco Bell, at 547 Merrick Road, where a restaurant employee, who had been informed by detectives of the earlier robbery, recognized them and notified the police. The handgun was recovered, and no injuries were reported.

Rivera was charged with second-degree robbery and fourth-degree possession of a dangerous weapon. The second defendant was charged as a juvenile offender with second-degree robbery and fourth-degree possession of a dangerous weapon. They were arraigned in First District Court in Hempstead on Dec. 31.