Suspect in Long Island, Queens robbery spree to be arraigned
FAR ROCKAWAY, Queens (WABC) -- An arraignment is expected Thursday for the man being held in connection with a spree of more than two dozen store robberies across Queens and Long Island.
Khalif House, 24, of West Hempstead, will face federal robbery charges during his arraignment in federal court in Central Islip. He was held overnight by the Nassau County Police Department in Mineola.
He is being held in connection with four of the 27 robberies that he has been linked to by investigators.
His girlfriend, Lisette Veltri, 24, was charged with assisting him in seven to 10 of the robberies by serving as the getaway driver. She has already been arraigned on charges of interfering with interstate commerce by robbery in federal court in Central Islip. She has no prior criminal record and was released on $150,000 bond.
Veltri told investigators that she drove House to small businesses in Nassau, Suffolk and Queens, and then picked him up a short time later on 7 to 10 occasions. She was caught sitting in her car following Tuesday night's Dollar Tree attempted robbery and identified House to police from surveillance photos from the robberies and an earlier NYPD mugshot
House is believed to be responsible for 25 robberies, mostly at fast food businesses and convenience stores, since May. In all of them, he allegedly wielded a large butcher's knife and threatened the clerk before fleeing with whatever he could get.
In the most recent incident, police said he attempted to rob a Dollar Tree on 14th Avenue in Whitestone around 10:13 p.m. Tuesday as it closed for the evening. The suspect failed to get anything, and he was identified following the incident.
Later, authorities said he broke into two homes in Floral Park overnight, and in one case, was confronted by a homeowner who walked downstairs to find House sleeping on his couch.
Eventually, House was taken into custody. Eight of the robberies he is accused of occurred in Queens, in addition to 17 on Long Island. No injuries were reported in any of the incidents.
