Federal Robbery, Weapons Charges For 3 Men In String Of Passaic Co. Holdups

PATERSON, NJ — Three men have been charged with stealing thousands of dollars during a two-day spree of violent armed robberies that took place in Passaic County last summer, said federal authorities.

Officials said the defendants used the guns to threaten people, and one pistol-whipped a victim in the face during robberies of a convenience store, a bodega, and several other businesses in Paterson and Passaic on Aug. 22 and 23, 2022.

U.S. Attorney Philip R. Sellinger announced charges earlier this week against 30-year-old Willingboro resident Kareem Powell, and Paterson residents Carlos Diaz and Edward Porter, who are also both 30 years old.

All face charges of robbery under the Hobbs Act, which makes it a crime to affect interstate or foreign commerce by actual (or attempted) robbery and extortion. The three also face charges of brandishing a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence, Sellinger said.

According to officials, the trio first robbed a bodega in Passaic of thousands of dollars on Aug. 22, while pointing their guns at a man and threatening to kill him. Later that evening, they are further accused of robbing a Paterson business of several thousand dollars. The defendants also "menaced customers with handguns and ordered them to lie on the ground" during both of these incidents, officials said.

The next night, officials said Diaz and Porter robbed two other businesses at gunpoint. The first was a Passaic liquor store, where authorities allege Porter used his gun to hit a victim in the face before leaving with several thousand dollars.

Later that evening, Diaz and Porter are accused in the robbery of a Paterson business, where Porter "pushed one victim and wrestled with a different victim, dragging the victim to the floor while attempting to take the victim’s handbag," according to authorities.

Upon conviction, a count of Hobbs Act robbery carries a maximum potential penalty of 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine, officials said. A count of brandishing a firearm during a crime of violence carries a mandatory minimum sentence of seven years in prison, which must be served consecutively to any other sentence imposed, per officials.