A 30-count indictment unsealed Tuesday in a Riverhead, N.Y., courtroom charges 19-year-old Sean Allen and 18-year-old Felicia Smith with robbery as a hate crime and other offenses. They pleaded not guilty and were held on $300,000 bond.
Allen's attorney did return a call for comment; Smith was represented by Legal Aid, which does not comment on pending cases.
District Attorney Thomas Spota says the pair targeted Hispanics for robbery because they believed the victims carried a lot of cash. The victims were also targeted because they did not appear to speak English and were perceived unlikely to report the robberies to police.
