Crime & Public Safety.
Two 18-year-old men from the Philadelphia region have been charged in connection with an electric bicycle robbery and assault at Souderton Community Park last month.
Souderton Police said Derek Oloya, of the 2700 block of Woodview Drive, Hatfield Township, and Joseph Eugene Mercado, of the 100 block of East Lippincott Street, Philadelphia, conspired to take a black Ouxi V8 electric bicycle valued at more than $1,000 from another teen around 8 p.m. Sept. 22 at the park on Wile Avenue in the borough.
Investigators said the pair approached the victim while he was riding the e-bike, knocked him off, and struck him three times during a brief struggle before fleeing toward a nearby store with the bicycle.
Video evidence captured by a bystander and park security cameras reportedly showed the assault and theft, police wrote in the criminal complaints.
Police later identified Oloya as one of the suspects, using help from Souderton Area School District Police, and he turned himself in Sept. 29 accompanied by family members, according to the complaint. During interviews, police said Oloya admitted involvement and identified Mercado as the second suspect.
Both men have been charged with felony counts of robbery, theft by unlawful taking and related conspiracy offenses, as well as misdemeanor counts of simple assault and harassment.
Souderton Area School District officials confirmed that Oloya is not a student of the district.
Oloya is free on 10% of $2,500 cash bail, according to court records. A preliminary hearing is set for Oct. 8 at 9 a.m. before Magisterial District Judge Adam T. Katzman.
All suspects and defendants are innocent until proven guilty. This story was compiled using public court records.
