A former armed guard allegedly used his knowledge to steal $1.7 million from an armored vehicle.
Dante McCluney, 35, of Newark, is accused of burglarizing the Rapid Armored Corporation vehicle at Bally's Atlantic City with two other men.
Atlantic County Prosecutor Damon Tyner called it "a brazen burglary... on a public street in broad daylight," so it was unclear why he waited nearly three weeks to make the crime public.
The two other suspects remain at large, although Tyner indicated they have been identified.
Atlantic City police were called to Bally's at 12:40 p.m. Nov. 5.
Video surveillance showed three men accessed the RAC vehicle at 12:10 p.m., and removed bags of U.S. currency. They then left the area in a gray Hyundai sedan at 12:15 p.m., Tyner said.
When McCluney worked for RAC, he was assigned to the so-called "AC ATM" run that serviced Bally's and became familiar with the run's timing and procedures, according to the charges.
Two RAC employees positively identified McCluney from surveillance footage from the Boardwalk just before the theft.
McCluney was arrested last Wednesday, and had a detention hearing before Superior Court Judge Donna Taylor on Tuesday.
He was ordered held, and will remain in the Atlantic County Justice Facility.
"Out of all the crimes I’ve seen committed in Atlantic County during my tenure, this incident harkened back to something out of the 1930s," Tyner said. "Thankfully, we have a talented, hard-working group of detectives who used old-fashioned detective work to track down Dante McCluney, and then identify the other suspects. It should be noted that a substantial amount of the stolen cash has been recovered."
He did not indicate exactly how much that was.
