Montgomery Man Jailed For Chasing Woman, Kids With Fake Gun: Cops

MONTGOMERY, NJ — A Montgomery man was sentenced to four years in state prison on charges that he chased a woman and two small children with a fake rifle during an attempted robbery in the township, announced Attorney General Gurbir S. Grewal.

Michael Kibalo, 29, of Montgomery Township, pleaded guilty on Sept. 24 to charges of second-degree robbery and third-degree bias intimidation for being motivated by anti-Asian bias. These charges were filed by the Division of Criminal Justice.

He also pleaded guilty to two counts of third-degree aggravated assault filed by the Somerset County Prosecutor’s Office for assaulting his parents with a shovel weeks after the robbery incident, said Grewal.

Kibalo was sentenced to four years in prison on both charges, to be served concurrently. He must serve 85 percent of the sentence without the possibility of parole.

The attempted robbery happened on the afternoon of March 10 when Kibalo, who had his head and face covered with a hooded sweatshirt and mask, pointed a fake rifle at a woman and ordered her to give him her cell phone, said Grewal.

When the woman refused, she and two small children ran away in the area of Belle Glades Lane and Sleepy Hollow Lane before Kibalo caught her and tried to wrestle the phone from her hands, said Grewal.

The woman and kids were able to get away from Kibalo when he fell, said Grewal.

A man heard the woman screaming and ran to help, but before he reached her, a Montgomery Township police officer arrived. Kibalo stopped chasing the woman and faced the officer, aid Grewal.

Kibalo was still holding the fake gun, which police say had no orange tip or other markings to show it was not real.

Officer Connor Chapkowski ordered Kibalo to put down the gun multiple times before he listened. Kibalo was arrested with the help of another township officer, said Grewal.

"This man terrorized his victims and created a very dangerous situation," said Grewal. "I commend the Montgomery Township police officers for their handling of this incident. We’re committed to fully investigating and prosecuting bias crimes in New Jersey. As members of law enforcement and as a society, we need to push back against intolerance and hatred."

"I want to recognize Officer Connor Chapkowski assisted by Officer Kendall Bohannon for their swift actions to de-escalate and control the situation," said Montgomery Township Police Director James M. Gill. "I'm also proud of our additional responding officers and the detectives who investigated this case, in cooperation with the Somerset County Prosecutor’s Office and the Division of Criminal Justice. Lastly, I want to recognize two other unnamed people. Upon hearing the victim scream, a contractor working nearby immediately took action to help the victims in the case. Also, a neighbor who heard the commotion opened her home to provide a safe area for the victims as the suspect was taken into custody. At a time when the more common response we see across the country is for people to stop to record events, these two people instead chose to actively help our victims at an incredibly chaotic time."

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