Teen Sentenced To 18 Months In Armed Robbery

SNOW HILL – A Finksburg, Md. juvenile, charged as an adult for his part in a pair of armed robberies in the resort in April, pleaded guilty last week to attempted armed robbery and was sentenced to eight years in jail, all of which was suspended but 18 months.

Andrew William Hyle, Jr., 16, of Finksburg, Md., was in Circuit Court last Wednesday for a motions hearing related to charges against him on two armed robberies on the same night in Ocean City in April. Hyle was arrested on April 22, along with two other accomplices in the robberies: Matthew Balaz-Ogle, 16, also of Finksburg, and a juvenile female. The trio was arrested after resort police connected them to two armed robberies, the first on the Boardwalk and the second a short time later on a motel parking lot at 30th Street.

In the first incident, Hyle approached a 45-year-old woman and two teenage girls on the Boardwalk and asked for a cigarette. When his request was denied, Hyle turned around and covered his face with a mask and demanded money from the woman and two girls at knifepoint.

The woman refused, mocking Hyle because she had just seen his face before he covered it with a mask and there were many other people in the area. Hyle threatened to stab the woman before fleeing the scene and jumping in a car driven by Balaz-Ogle.

However, the pair wasn’t finished with their armed robbery spree for the night. A short time later, Hyle and Balaz-Ogle ran into a pair of teenage boys in a meeting pre-arranged by the juvenile female accomplice. Hyle and Balaz-Ogle, who were both wearing masks over their faces, then accosted the victims.

The female accomplice later admitted she had come to Ocean City with Hyle and Balaz-Ogle and had lured the two victims to the motel parking lot for the robbery. Balaz-Ogle held up one of the victims at knifepoint, stealing a gold chain, an IPod, a cell phone and a hat.

Ocean City police were investigating the first attempted armed robbery on the Boardwalk when they got the call about the armed robbery at 30th Street by a pair matching the same description. OCPD officers later arrested Hyle and Balaz-Ogle on the beach not far from where the second incident occurred. While questioning the suspects, police observed Balaz-Ogle attempting to bury some of the loot stolen.

Balaz-Ogle is scheduled to appear in Circuit Court next month to face the same charges. The juvenile female accomplice is having her case handled by Juvenile Services.