Brick Man Gets 15-Year Sentence In Stabbing At Gas Station

A Brick Township man has been sentenced to 15 years in prison for stabbing and robbing a gas station attendant last September.

Samuel Patriaco, Jr., 24, must serve 12 years, 9 months of the sentence -- 85 percent -- before he becomes eligible for parole under the No Early Release Act, said Al Della Fave, spokesman for the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office.

Patriaco pleaded guilty on June 19 to first-degree robbery in the Sept. 1, 2014 incident at KD Automotive on Burnt Tavern Road in Brick, Della Fave said.

Della Fave said Patriaco admitted he approached Charanjee Singh, an attendant working at KD Automotive, while Singh was counting money at the gas pumps and grabbed the money out of his hand. When Singh attempted to retrieve the money, Patriaco stabbed Singh with a knife and fled. He was taken to Jersey Shore University Medical Center with serious injuries to his left upper abdomen/chest, where he recovered after undergoing surgery, he said.

The investigation into the robbery was conducted by members of the Brick Police Department Detective Bureau. The case was prosecuted by Ocean County Assistant Prosecutor Kelly J. Biringer.