Police say that Equonne Howard, 22, used his BMW X5 to smash through the metal security gate and glass windows at about 5 a.m.
Surveillance footage shows several men jumping out of the car and snatching merchandise.
That’s when things went wrong for the robbers. The security gate went back down behind the car, trapping it inside the store. Police say that Howard repeatedly rammed the gate to get back out and, at some point, his license plate fell off.
Police arrested Howard hours later when he went back to the store, possibly to look for his missing license plate.
Howard pleaded not guilty Sept. 13 in connection with the smash-and-grab robbery. He is being held on $600,000 bail on charges of vandalism, burglary and theft.
