By: Richard L. Smith
Three Essex County men have been indicted by a federal grand jury for their involvement in a gunpoint robbery of a pharmacy in Orange, New Jersey, in January 2024, U.S. Attorney Philip R. Sellinger announced today.
According to federal officials, Reginald Ware, 54, Nyiron Williams, 22, and Jamon Crosby, 35, all of Newark, face charges in a three-count indictment for conspiracy to commit Hobbs Act robbery, Hobbs Act robbery, and using, carrying, and brandishing a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence.
The three men, previously charged by complaint and detained, will be arraigned on a date to be determined.
According to court documents and statements, on January 16, 2024, Ware, Williams, and Crosby drove together to a pharmacy and entered the store within minutes of each other, all wearing black masks.
Inside the pharmacy, Ware and Williams brandished handguns and demanded money.
Crosby then joined them, also brandishing a handgun, and the trio demanded that store employees hand over their cell phones.
The robbers took cash and at least 10 bottles of prescription medication. When law enforcement arrived, the men fled toward a parking lot.
Ware was apprehended immediately in the parking lot, Williams was caught approximately two blocks away, and Crosby was found after breaking into a nearby residence.
The handguns used by Ware and Williams during the robbery were recovered by law enforcement.
The charge of using, carrying, and brandishing a firearm during a crime of violence carries a maximum potential penalty of life in prison.
For Williams and Crosby, there is a mandatory minimum sentence of seven years, while Ware faces a mandatory minimum of 25 years due to a previous conviction for the same crime in 2012, related to four gunpoint robberies of pharmacies in New Jersey.
This sentence must be served consecutively to any other sentence imposed.
The counts of conspiracy to commit Hobbs Act robbery and Hobbs Act robbery each carry a statutory maximum of 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine, or twice the gain or loss from the offense, whichever is greater.
U.S. Attorney Sellinger credited the investigation leading to today’s charges to special agents of the FBI, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge James E. Dennehy, and members of the Orange Police Department, under the direction of Police Director Todd Warren.