1 arrested, 2 sought in Midtown jewelry store robbery

NEW YORK (WABC) -- One man is under arrest and two others are being sought in connection to the armed robbery of a jewelry store in Midtown Manhattan.

Rondu Frisby, 37, was charged early Tuesday with robbery and criminal possession of a controlled substance. The victim of the robbery spoke to Eyewitness News exclusively about the arrest.

"Definitely in shock. (This is someone you considered an acquaintance?) Acquaintance, friend, someone I spent time with," said Daniel Mikhaylov, the robbery victim.

Daniel Mikhaylov is still trying to get his head around the fact that, he essentially was duped by a friend here inside his office at the Watch Standard jewelry store in the Diamond District.

"I didn't expect it, it was unexpected," Mikhaylov said.

Daniel agreed to meet with Eyewitness about how things are slowly adding up, now that Rondu Frisby is in custody. His nickname is Reef, a man authorities believe is the inside man in last week's heist that cost Daniel and his family hundreds of thousands of dollars.

"He acted in a very weird way, he was very comfortable, the guy that was in the office with the gun was very comfortable with him being there,"Mikhaylov said.

Mikhaylov said Frisby was sitting right next to him when Leon Fenner approached the office doors; Mikhaylov could see the suspect through this security system and reluctantly buzzed him in.

Mikhaylov said Frisby actually opened the door, and seconds later Fenner pulled out a semi-automatic weapon and told Mikhaylov to empty the safe and put more than a dozen high end Rolex watches into a bag.

What Mikhaylov didn't know is that, according to authorities, Frisby and Fenner know each other, and that right before the robbery the pair was captured by surveillance cameras walking about 20 feet apart on 47th Street.

The federal complaint details how, on the same day, Frisby texted and telephoned Fenner more than 25 times, including at 2:14 p.m., exactly six minutes before the heist.

"I did see him text somebody that day. (While he was in the office, right before the robbery?) Yeah, but you know, he could be texting anybody, who knew," Mikhaylov said.

It's salt in the wound, once the second suspect showed up in the hallway and both took off.

"Me, my friend, even my sister chased him, we all chased him down, but he stayed in the office. He stayed in the office until the cops told him to get out," Mikhaylov said.

Detectives later went searching to follow up with Frisby, but he could not be found for several days. They finally executed a federal search warrant at his apartment in Harlem at 4 p.m. Monday and found him.

They say that when they burst in, he threw three bags containing 1 1/2 pounds of cocaine and marijuana out a window. They recovered jewelry from his apartment's closet, including Rolex watches.

Detectives are still searching for the two holdup men caught on camera, identified as Fenner and a lookout who remains unidentified.

Fingerprints taken from a large yellow envelope held by Fenner and recovered at the scene match Fenner's print in a law enforcement database, according to the criminal complaint.

Frisby is described in the complaint as a friend of the owner who sometimes conducted business at the store and was there the day of the robbery to supposedly "help a friend pick out jewelry for the friend's girlfriend."

Anyone with information is asked to call Crime Stoppers at (800) 577-TIPS (8477).