NORFOLK, Va. — Charges are moving forward against two men accused of robbing an armored truck.
During the preliminary hearing for Joshua Mercado and Keith Doughty, prosecutors maintained the heist was an inside job.
They told the courtroom: the two men knew each other and worked together to plan the robbery.
An investigator said in court, police recovered $172,000 in cash.
The robbery was caught on surveillance video. It shows an armored truck parked outside a business on Granby Street, robbed at gunpoint on March 19.
A police investigator told the court, Doughty approached the Brink's truck and took money from the driver, Brink's employee Mercado, before taking off.
The investigator said Mercado initially told officers he didn't know who the culprit was.
However, during seven hours of questioning, Mercado's story changed. The investigator said Mercado wound up telling officers he recognized the robber as Doughty, a client of his at his barbershop, and the two had discussed previously how easy it would be to rob the truck.
The investigator said Doughty meanwhile told police during questioning, he and Mercado worked together to plan the whole thing and used coded language to stage the hold-up.
The men are facing charges of conspiracy to commit grand larceny and embezzlement, among other charges.