'Sopranos' Actor Indicted in NY for Robbery, Drugs

August 3, 2001 1:03 pm EST

By Chris Michaud

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Actor Robert Iler, who plays the troubled teen-age son of a mob boss on the hit HBO television show "Sopranos," was indicted on Friday on charges stemming from the alleged robbery of two other teen-agers in July, authorities said.

Iler, 16, and two others were charged with robbery in the second degree, a felony that can carry a sentence of up to 15 years in prison, said Manhattan District Attorney Robert Morgenthau. Sixteen-year-olds are charged and sentenced as adults under New York law.

Iler was also charged with marijuana possession, which carries a maximum fine of $100. He and his co-defendants will be arraigned in State Supreme Court on an as yet undetermined date.

The charges stemmed from a July 3 incident in which two teen-age tourists were allegedly robbed of $40 in Manhattan shortly before midnight on a street on the Upper East Side. Iler and two other youths were arrested nearby after the alleged victims pointed them out to police.

Also charged were Michael Cournede and Alban Selimaj, with Cournede additionally accused of possession of a box cutter, a misdemeanor punishable by up to one year in prison.

Iler plays A.J. Soprano on the hit HBO drama about New Jersey mobsters. As the sulky teen age son of mob boss Tony Soprano, his character has variously smoked pot, vandalized his high school and been expelled for cheating on tests.

According to the criminal complaint, Iler and his friends threatened the victims of the robbery saying "Give us your money. Do you wanna' die? Do you wanna' die?" The victims flagged down police and with the officers spotted the alleged robbers sitting on a park bench several blocks away.

Iler's attorneys have said he had his back turned and neither saw the incident nor heard any demand for money.

David Chase, the "Sopranos"' creator and executive producer, has said he took Iler at his word that he was innocent. "If he says he didn't rob anybody, then he didn't. It's as simple as that for me," he said in an earlier statement.

Iler has said he was "terribly embarrassed" by his arrest and was sorry for putting his family and friends through an "extremely difficult" time.

Iler and his co-defendants have been out on bail since shortly after their arrests. A juvenile arrested in connection with the incident is being dealt with in juvenile court.

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Stupid kid (Robert Iler)....What was he thinking?


Robert Iler and tv dad James Gandolfini

What pisses me off about it because he plays the son of a bigshot on a show he thinks he can be a bigshot in real life.

Sticking someone up with a letter opener, now I've heard it all. Why didn't those tourists pick up a brick and smash his face with it

There was a televised news report that the NYPD (Police) was investigating Iler to see if he could be tied to other (similar) crimes.

UPDATE : See link to newspaper article (below)


NEW YORK POST ARTICLE ON ROBERT ILER

[ August 06, 2001: Message edited by: SC ]

He'll be found not guilty, or no contest dont worry