By Forum Staff
Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced that Reginald Williams was sentenced on Friday to more than a decade in prison for his role in an armed robbery spree in November 2022. His two co-defendants have pleaded guilty and will be sentenced this month.
Williams, 23, of Brooklyn, pleaded guilty on June 9 to two counts of robbery in the first degree before Justice Gia Morris, who sentenced him to 11 years in prison and five years’ post-release supervision.
When sentenced July 10, co-defendants Calvin Scantlebury, 39, faces up to six years in prison and Dewkwan Cooper, 23, is expected to receive five years’ probation.
The three men were charged with taking part in the following robberies from Nov. 8, 2022, through Nov. 20, 2022. The dates, locations and items taken are as follows:
- Nov. 8, between 12:48 a.m. and 12:50 a.m., at 135-28 Rockaway Blvd., approximately $900-$1,000.
- Nov. 8, between 10:53 p.m. and 10:56 p.m., at 79-09 Rockaway Blvd., approximately $600 and a quantity of checks.
- Nov. 9, between 1:30 a.m. and 1:55 a.m., at 66-10 Grand Ave., approximately $3,900.
- Nov. 11, between 1:10 a.m. and 1:15 a.m., at 87-74 168th St., approximately $2,000 and a chain from a victim’s neck.
- Nov. 11, between 1:45 a.m. and 1:55 a.m., at 793 Wyckoff Ave., approximately $2,000, the cell phone of a security guard, a sum of money from the wallet of one employee, lottery tickets and 10 packs of Newport cigarettes.
- Nov. 15, between 1:55 a.m. and 2:00 a.m., at 66-20 Fresh Pond Road, approximately $1,000 from the cash register, multiple cigarette packs and a customer’s cellphone.
- Nov. 16, between 11:53 p.m. and 11:55 p.m., at 44-33 Kissena Blvd. The defendants fled empty handed.
- Nov. 17, between 12:50 a.m. and 12:55 a.m., at 17-55 Francis Lewis Blvd., approximately $2,400 and eight MetroCards.
- On Nov. 20, between 12:20 a.m. and 12:30 a.m., at 92-22 Astoria Blvd, approximately $3,000 and rolling papers.
- On Nov. 20, between 12:57 a.m. and 1:00 a.m., at 39-04 Skillman Ave., approximately $1,700 and multiple packs of Newport cigarettes.
The defendants were arrested after the robberies on Nov. 20, when police received a description of the trio fleeing in a Nissan Maxima. A cop who saw the car and suspects, pulled them over for a traffic violation and observed multiple packs of Newport cigarettes in the vehicle. The defendants were identified by the victims in both Nov. 20 incidents. A search warrant was executed on the vehicle and a loaded .40-caliber pistol was recovered from the trunk.
Each incident was captured on video surveillance and showed the three perpetrators wearing distinctive clothing and face masks. Williams was arrested wearing clothing from some of the robberies.
“Small businesses are the lifeblood of our communities. We will prosecute anyone trying to take advantage of their hard-working proprietors and employees, or their customers. We can never lose sight of the fact that communities thrive when local businesses thrive,” Katz said.
