A Waldwick NJ man recently pleaded guilty to charges related to the kidnapping of a taxi driver in Paterson, New Jersey.
The suspect is a 21-year-old resident of Waldwick in Bergen County, NJ. He was reportedly among a group of men who committed an armed robbery at a bar in Hawthorne NJ on Christmas Day and later kidnapped a cabbie in Paterson, NJ.
After grabbing the victim and forcing him into the backseat of the taxi, the Waldwick suspect allegedly struck him in the head with a beer bottle. Additionally, the suspects allegedly cut the driver s throat with a knife and then tossed him out of the vehicle somewhere in New York.
Fortunately, the victim survived his injuries and was later able to identify the suspects.
Now the Waldwick NJ suspect is likely headed to a federal penitentiary for a long time after reaching a plea agreement with the US Attorney s Office and pleading guilty to criminal charges for kidnapping, armed robbery, and carjacking.
The suspect will have to appear in federal court in August 2017 so that his plea deal can be formally approved and he can be sentenced to prison time.
Two other men involved in the Hawthorne tavern robbery have already pleaded guilty to federal criminal charges, while three other suspects in the case face trial in U.S. District Court.
For more information about this case, read the NJ.com article, “Man Pleads Guilty to Christmas Day Robbery, Kidnapping Taxi Driver.”
