Four teenage boys hungry for Chinese food Monday night robbed the deliveryman rather than pay, but finishing the stolen meal just wasn’t in their fortunes. They had intentionally sent the deliveryman to a vacant residence near Daytona Beach where they beat him up and took the food and the victim’s money. However, neighbors witnessed the robbery and sent responding Volusia County Sheriff’s deputies right to the suspects’ feast around the corner. The four boys – all of them are 17 – were arrested and charged with robbery. The deliveryman wasn’t seriously injured.
The deliveryman from China Star restaurant arrived at the vacant house in the 1200-block of Cedar Circle, at about 5:20 p.m. The 49-year-old man left the $60 worth of food in a cardboard box in the passenger seat of his car as he got out to talk to the waiting boys. He didn’t speak much English, but he made it clear that he expected payment before he would hand over the food. However, the boys instead started hitting him in the face repeatedly and reached into his pants pocket, taking the money they found there. Then they went into his car, grabbed the food and ran down the street.
A neighbor who witnessed the attack helped the victim by calling 911. When deputies arrived, another local resident pointed out the house where the boys fled to on Highridge Road. Inside were the boy who lived there, Jose Chavez, and his three friends: Dylan Reitzel, Anthony Romine and Dusty Malone. A few other people were also present, but they had nothing to do with the robbery. The Chinese food was found in a bedroom. The boys were transported to the Volusia Regional Juvenile Detention Center in Daytona Beach.
