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City police nabbed Naeem Jackson, 24, of East Orange, and Walter Williams-Lang, 22, of Elizabeth, but the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Newark took the case because of the government’s ability to secure much harsher penalties than under state law.
There's also no parole in the federal prison system, which means both men must serve out their entire terms.
Jackson and Williams-Lang were wearing dark clothing and masks over their faces when they entered the cabbie's minivan shortly after 4:30 a.m. on May 14, 2022, U.S. Attorney Philip R. Sellinger said.
Williams-Lang pointed a gun at the driver and demanded money, the U.S. attorney said.
Jackson then “took the firearm from Williams-Lang and pistol-whipped the taxi driver’s head several times before shooting him in the arm,” he said.
Police found the victim at a gas station at Fairmont and Newark avenues, where he’d pulled in for help, Sellinger said.
The fleeing robbers were caught soon after, he said -- all for $20, the driver told police.
Both men took deals from the government rather than face the potential consequences of a trial, pleading guilty to Hobbs Act robbery, conspiracy and weapons possession, including possession of a firearm as a convicted felon.
Jackson also pleaded guilty to carjacking for a separate incident on May 5, 2022, in which Sellinger said he "brandished a loaded firearm, demanded a taxi driver’s fares, cellphone, and wallet, and then stole the driver’s vehicle."
U.S. District Judge Robert Kugler sentenced Jackson to a plea-bargained 8½ years in federal prison and Williams-Lang to 7 years and three months in federal court in Camden. Both were also sentenced to three months of supervised release under the terms of their respective plea bargains.Sellinger credited Elizabeth police and the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives’ Newark Field Division with the investigation leading to the pleas and sentences secured by Assistant U.S. Attorney Barry O’Connell of his Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force in Newark.
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