Three Bronx men, including a state corrections officer, were busted for partaking in a series of daytime armed robberies of armored cars in the Bronx over the past few months, federal authorities said.
Michael Santiago, 29, a corrections officer at Downstate Correctional Facility in Fishkill, NY, along with Kenneth Smith, 34, and Bruce Collazo, 20, were nabbed by a joint FBI-NYPD task force on Thursday, the feds said.
All three men, who authorities said were part of a larger crew, were charged with conspiracy to commit armed robbery, according to a criminal complaint filed in federal court. They all face life in prison.
NYPD Commissioner Bill Bratton called the operation “the most significant case since the re-formation of the oldest task force in law enforcement history.”
The heists were carried out Aug. 24, Dec. 4 and Dec. 15, and the crooks netted more than $100,000.
During the latest robbery on Dec. 15, a sharply dressed crew member ambushed an armored van for Rapid Armored Corp. and exchanged gunfire with a guard before making off with nearly $80,000, sources said.
Collazo, who goes by the nickname “Tonz,” posted photos of himself on Instagram reveling in wads of cash shortly after the first robbery, federal authorities said.



